The Wager
by morningsofgold777
Summary: This is the sequel to 'Sweet Revenge'. Toby takes us back to the Underground when he wishes Jareth away. Sarah must find a way to get Jareth and the Goblin Kingdom back from a High King who doesn't believe in the power of love.
1. Chapter 1 - Taken

**CHAPTER ONE**

_Taken_

'What about this one, Your Majesty?' The old dwarf, Fenwick, suggested, pushing a piece of parchment across the desk to the High King. 'Henrietta comes from a good family, one of the best in the Goblin Realm, and she's young enough to produce several heirs.'

Dart picked up the parchment, studied it and then scowled. 'She's a bit large, isn't she?

'In the matchmaking trade, we like to call it Junoesque.'

'You can call it whatever you want,' Dart retorted. 'It doesn't change the fact that she's three times my size. Besides,' he muttered, tossing the parchment at the dwarf, 'she looks like a giggler. I can't abide gigglers.'

Fenwick was not daunted. A good matchmaker always had more than one candidate up his sleeve. He rolled up the parchment of Henrietta, placed it carefully in his satchel before removing another parchment, which he spread out before the king.

'Then what about Lady Frances? She's a much more pleasing size, eh?'

Dart barely gave the lady a glance. 'She looks like a schoolmarm.'

'We've been going through these candidates for over an hour,' the dwarf pointed out, his patience wearing thin. 'If you'll forgive me for saying so, Your Majesty is not cooperating. What does it matter what she looks like as long as she produces an heir?'

Yes, Dart wondered, what did it matter? It wasn't as if he hadn't been through this before. Aida had been selected for him by his father. She'd been pretty enough, but that was about all he could say for her. Her conversational skills were minimal, and it had been like bedding an icicle. He had kept his visits to her bedchamber as brief and as rare as possible. Perhaps that was why there'd been no heir before she'd been killed by that arrow while hunting jackalope.

He hadn't felt a great deal of grief at her death. On the contrary, he had actually felt relieved. His father had faded since the marriage, making it possible for him to choose his own fate, and he'd been more than content to let little brother ascend the High King throne when the time came. Let _him_ provide an heir. But now that was impossible.

His expression darkened at the thought of his blasted brother. It was all his bloody fault that Dart now had to find a queen. If he hadn't fallen in love with that human, thrown away his Kingdom and settled in the Aboveground, none of this matchmaking business would be necessary. If he had to fall in love, why couldn't it have been with one of the local girls? Why a detestable human?

'Your Majesty,' Fenwick cried, 'you're crinkling Lady Frances.'

Dart glanced down. His gloved fingers were clenched around Lady Frances bird-like neck. He immediately loosened his grip, and Fenwick rescued the lady, giving him a disgusted glance as he hurriedly rolled up the parchment before any more atrocities could happen to his stock.

'Are there any more?' Dart asked.

'You've seen all I have,' Fenwick retorted. 'Perhaps Your Majesty just doesn't want a wife.'

The dwarf was right. One had been more than enough. Dart had hoped to live out the rest of his days hunting for that elusive jackalope, placing bets at the pooka races and playing fizzbin at the local pub. He had not considered setting up a nursery.

'Come back next week and I'll have another look at them,' he told the dwarf.

'Very well,' Fenwick said with a sniff as he slung his satchel over his hunched shoulder. 'But if I may be so bold, Your Majesty isn't getting any younger. If you don't choose another wife soon, it'll be too late, and the Goblin Realm will have no heir. What will the goblins do without a king?'

Before Dart could threaten him with the bog for such insolence, the dwarf turned on his heel and stalked out of the room, every whisker in his long, grey beard bristling with righteous indignation. He'd been the royal matchmaker for two centuries, and he was not pleased to have his stock rejected for such things as giggling, buck teeth or a squint. All his candidates had excellent bloodlines and came from the best families. It was obvious to him that the High King was simply looking for any excuse not to marry.

Dart leaned back in his chair, glad to see the dwarf and his stock depart. How uncomfortable his life had become since Jareth's departure. Not only did he have the unpleasant task of finding a new wife, he also had to perform all the duties of Goblin King. He really must look at getting a replacement, but how? It wasn't something he could advertise for. To be honest, that position had never been vacant. No previous Goblin King had abdicated or been stripped of his Kingdom. Leave it to Jareth to set a new standard.

And for what, he silently demanded. For a woman? No woman was worth such sacrifice, even one as exceptional as Sarah Williams. Dart's lips twitched as he remembered his confrontation with her. She'd been magnificent, standing toe to toe with him, ordering him to reverse the 'transfer' spell. No wonder Jareth had been captivated by her. Of course, the glossy dark hair, green eyes and shapely body hadn't hurt, but he suspected it had been her spirit, her independence that had won Jareth's heart. He loved her for the very thing that he could not control.

Maybe if he could find a woman like this human…Dart shot to his feet. He was not interested in following that train of thought. It was dangerous. It's what got Jareth into trouble and Dart had no intention of following that example. He had too many responsibilities.

He lifted his hand to ring for his valet but stopped as an all too familiar tingling swept over him. Oh, bloody hell, not again! What was he? A bloody Jack in the Box to these people? Rage filled him as he heard the dreaded words.

_Goblin King, Goblin King, wherever you may be, take this Goblin King far away from me!_

The voice was as clear as if the speaker was standing beside him, and he could not resist its summons. No one in the Aboveground was supposed to know those words, but as always, Jareth had been careless. He had made two humans privy to one of the most powerful phrases in the Goblin Realm, and now, Dart was forced to heed its summons. Like a dog obeying a bloody whistle, he thought as he disappeared in a shimmer of light.

He reappeared in Jareth's living room. It was empty except for a boy. He looked closer, recognizing him as the boy he'd turned into a goblin, the screamer.

'Hey, you're the dude with the cape,' the boy said.

Dart glared down him. 'Why have you called me?'

'You heard what I said,' the boy retorted. 'I want you to take the Goblin King away. It's what you dudes do, don't you? Take things?'

'I'm assuming that you're referring to Jareth.'

The boy frowned. 'Sure, I'm talking about Jareth. He's the Goblin King, ain't he?'

'He was.'

'Then take him away.'

'Why?'

'You mean I have to give a reason too?'

'It's part of the procedure, yes,' Dart lied.

There were no procedures involved in fulfilling a request. Goblin Kings merely took what they were told to take, but the screamer didn't know that, and Dart was curious. Jareth had made an enemy, cunning and resourceful enemy apparently, and he wanted to know the reason why. Of course, it might have something to do with that little incident in the study, but Dart suspected that it originated in more selfish motives.

'He doesn't belong here,' the boy declared, his voice full of resentment. 'He's not human. He's,' he waved a hand at Dart, 'he's whatever you are, an alien or monster or something, and I don't want him marrying my sister.'

The only truth in that statement, Dart decided, was that he didn't want Jareth marrying Sarah. It had nothing to do with not being human. If Jareth married Sarah, then he would be a permanent resident in the boy's home and life. Jareth would not put up with any shenanigans. He hadn't put up with it in his goblins, and he wouldn't put up with it with this boy either.

'And you think taking him away will stop him?'

'Sure, why not? He doesn't have the same power that you have.'

'He will when he returns to the Underground.'

'But you can stop him, right?'

'Possibly,' Dart allowed.

'Then stop him,' the boy urged, his expression spiteful. 'Keep him out of our world.'

Obviously the boy had learned nothing from being turned into a goblin. He was just as bratty as before. Jareth had been too soft on the child. Dart did not intend to be. He had no choice but to obey the request, but that didn't mean he couldn't leave the brat with a lasting reminder of his perfidy.

'I shall take Jareth back to the Underground as requested,' Dart declared, his mismatched eyes glaring down at the child, 'but you are a malicious little boy, Toby Williams, and you already know what happens to little boys such as yourself. Jareth was much too soft on you, probably because of your sister, but I am not Jareth, and I believe you should get what you deserve.' Throwing out a gloved hand, he pointed at the boy, his voice rising until it not only filled the living room but the rest of the penthouse as well. 'Within a fortnight, you will become exactly what your actions declare you to be. You, Toby Williams, will be a goblin. _LET IT BEGIN NOW!'_

Immediately the boy's ears became long, pointed and hairy. His hands went to the sides of his head, and he stared at Dart, open-mouthed and horrified.

'Think carefully before you use those words again, my boy. With great power comes great responsibility.'

With a laugh, Dart disappeared in a shimmer of light, materializing outside as the large white eagle. He'd take the long way home. He was not eager to return to the castle. By now, Jareth would be there, kicking goblins and throwing the mother of all temper tantrums. He would demand to be returned to the Aboveground, but this time Dart had no intention of complying with his wishes.

He'd had enough of this 'love' nonsense. It had turned the Goblin Realm, not to mention Dart's life, upside down, and it was time that it stopped. He had indulged the boy far too long. He would do what their father had done for him at Jareth's age. He would get the boy a proper wife, not some detestable human, no matter how attractive and spirited, and Jareth would go about the business of securing an heir for the Goblin Realm. He might not be able to be High King because of his foolishness, but his son could. Bloody hell, at this point, Dart was willing to accept a queen, if need be.

He smiled inwardly, pleased with his own brilliance. It was the perfect solution to the mess that Jareth had landed them in by his ridiculous obsession with a human. It would allow Dart to continue hunting and gambling, and it would be just punishment for Jareth's reckless behavior. It was high time for him to start acting like a Goblin King.

**SCENE CHANGE**

'Oh my God,' the agent screamed, 'he disappeared! He was right here, and then,' she waved her arms helplessly, 'he was gone! I…I think I'm going to faint.'

Sarah whirled around just as the agent crumpled to the floor. Unease and then panic began to build as her eyes scanned the room for Jareth. The agent was right. He was gone, vanished. Something like that didn't happen unless magic was involved, and the only magic she knew of was in the Underground. It was as if…she paused, her brows pulling together in a fierce scowl. It was as if somebody had wished Jareth away.

'Toby,' she said, spitting out the name as if it were a rotten piece of fruit.

Leaving the agent lying on the floor – let her think it a dream - she sprinted out of the house and into the Lamborghini. The car roared to life, and for the first time, Sarah was glad that the car had such power and speed. She flew down the freeway, slipping in and out of traffic with ease and arrived at Jareth's penthouse in less than twenty minutes.

'_Toby_,' she yelled, bursting into the apartment like an avenging angel. '_What the hell have you done?!'_

There was no answer, but she could hear something. She listened. It sounded like crying. Leaving the entrance way, she followed the sound and found Toby on his knees in the middle of the living room, his hands over his ears, crying uncontrollably.

Kneeling down beside him, she demanded. 'What is it? Why are you crying? This has something do with Jareth, doesn't it? You wished him away, didn't you?'

The boy just continued to cry, holding his ears as though they were hurting.

'What's wrong? Why are you holding your ears?'

More crying.

Finally, she reached up and forcibly removed his hands. She stared. His ears were green, pointy and had hair growing out of them. Goblin ears.

'Toby, what have you done?' She repeated.

'I…I…wished Jareth…away,' the boy blubbered. 'He came…'

'Who came?'

'The…the dude in the cape.'

'Did he look like Jareth but older?'

'Yeah, and his hair,' he hiccupped, 'is longer.'

Dart, she thought grimly. Calling Jareth was one thing; calling Dart was another. Older brother was definitely the more frightening of the two. And why not, she mused, he'd had a longer time to perfect the scowl, the arrogance, the swagger.

'What happened?'

'He said he'd take Jareth away, but then…' the sobbing began again, 'but then he put a curse on me.'

'A curse?'

'He said I was a malicious little boy, and within a fortnight I'd be a goblin. Sarah,' Toby cried, looking at her with stricken eyes. 'I don't want to be a goblin. All the kids at school will laugh at me.'

Sarah sat back on her heels. 'Well, I hate to say it, Toby, but you deserve this, and to tell you the truth, I don't feel much sympathy for you. As a matter of fact, I'm mad as hell at you for wishing Jareth away. You do realize that he'll just come back, don't you? He's a Goblin King. He can do things like that.'

'Can he change me back?' The eagerness in his voice was pathetic.

'I don't know,' Sarah admitted. 'It might work like it does on _Bewitched_. Only the witch that places the spell can remove it.'

'Can he get the other guy to remove it? Like he did in the study?'

Sarah looked at him with reproachful eyes. 'Why would he want to? You've been horrible to him, and even after he saved your life, you wished him away. How could you do something so mean?'

'I…' his eyes dropped to the floor, 'I didn't want him to marry you.'

'Why not?'

There was a long silence and then he suddenly burst out, his voice angry, resentful. 'Because I don't have a mom and dad like other kids. All I've got is you, and you've been mean to me lately, grounding me and not letting me go to Brad's house. You weren't like that before _he_ came along and turned you against me.'

'Jareth did not turn me against you,' Sarah told him. 'The truth is I realized that I've made a mistake as far as you're concerned. I was trying to make up for dad and Karen being gone, but all I've done is turn you into a spoiled brat. Maybe if I'd disciplined you more in the beginning, you wouldn't be smoking and drinking and hating Jareth so much that you'd want to take him away from me.' She looked at him, her eyes pleading with him to understand. 'I love Jareth, and it hurts that you wanted to take away something I love.'

'But you've got me,' he reminded her.

'I know I do, and I love you, Toby,' she assured him, 'but I love Jareth too. I love him in a different kind of way than I do you. You're my brother. He's the man I want to marry, to spend my life with. You'll understand when you're older and fall in love with some pretty girl.'

Toby made a face. 'Girls are weird.'

'I'm not asking you to love or even like Jareth.' She gave a little laugh. 'He's a difficult man to warm up to, but can't you try to accept him for my sake?'

'Maybe,' Toby agreed, his expression sullen. 'If he'll get that guy to get rid of these ears.'

'I'll see what I can do,' Sarah said, standing up. 'Now, come on, dry your eyes. A hat will hide those ears until Jareth returns.'

**SCENE CHANGE**

Jareth was furious. He stalked around Dart's royal study like a bull in a china shop. How dare his brother remove him from the Aboveground as though he were a baby wished away! It was intolerable, absolutely intolerable, and if he'd had his powers, he wouldn't be kicking his heels in this drafty old castle, waiting for his brother to show himself. He'd be with Sarah looking for their future home.

A flutter of drape, a rush of air caught his attention, and he whirled to see the eagle transforming itself back into his brother. Dart stood before him looking as frightening as ever in midnight blue cape studded with diamonds and sapphires. He stalked into the room, cape snapping about his ankles.

'What's the meaning of this?' Jareth instantly demanded. 'Why did you bring me here?'

Dart shrugged, not the least bit unsettled by his brother's fury. 'I was asked to take you away. You know the rules. I had to honor the request.'

'Who wished me away?'

'Can't you guess?'

Jareth's lip curled. 'It was the little brat, Toby.' He whirled away from his brother, stalked a few paces then stopped, running a frustrated hand through his hair before turning to confront Dart once again. 'Didn't he learn anything? If getting turned into a goblin wasn't enough to scare the bog out of him, you would have thought nearly dying would have taught him what he failed to learn the first time.'

'Oh, I think he'll learn his lesson now.'

That sounded ominous. Obviously, Dart had done more than just whisk away an ex-Goblin King. Jareth dreaded asking the next question, but he needed to know the full extent of the disaster waiting for him in the Aboveground.

'What did you do?'

Dart dropped into the big chair behind his desk, placing his boots on the surface before leaning back and saying, 'Put the goblin spell on him, of course. That's what we always do with bad little boys.'

'Go back and remove it at once.'

'Is that an order?' Dart's voice was dangerously soft, daring him to say it was.

Jareth didn't back down. 'Yes.'

'Who's High King around here? Me or you?' Dart let out a hard laugh that echoed around the cavernous study. 'You aren't even a Goblin King any more, and you're ordering me about as if I were a genie in a bottle? Your arrogance is breathtaking, little brother. Simply breathtaking.'

'We can't saddle Sarah with a goblin for a brother.'

'It's always Sarah with you, isn't it?' Dart challenged. 'Everything you do is centered on that woman. You've become her bloody slave. If that's what _love_,' Dart's lip curled, 'does to a man, then I'm glad I'm incapable of such a heinous emotion.'

Jareth dropped his head as he took a few deep breaths, trying desperately to hold onto his temper. Dramatics didn't work with Dart. Oh, he could put on a show as well as any Goblin King, but he wasn't swayed by sentimental arguments. One had to use reason.

'They don't have goblins in the Aboveground,' Jareth finally said. 'It'll raise all kinds of nasty questions if she's got one living with her.'

'I'm sure a chit with her mouth will think of an answer,' Dart told him.

Who was acting like a child now, Jareth wondered as he studied his brother's determined expression. There'd been a touch of bitterness in those words. It was obvious that he hadn't liked Sarah forcing him to reverse the spell. As High King he rarely, if ever, had to do anything he didn't want to. But Jareth didn't have time for his wounded ego. He had to get back to Sarah, especially if Toby was sprouting goblin ears. There was little time to waste. The nose would be next.

'Just send me back, and I'll take care of it myself.'

'I'm afraid I can't do that.'

'Then give me my powers, and I'll send myself back.'

'You had your powers the second you entered the Underground.'

That's all Jareth needed to hear. He immediately transformed into the great white owl and flew out of the open window. Dart waited, fingers steepled, ankles crossed. In less than ten minutes, the owl was back.

'I thought you said I had my powers,' Jareth said, his voice accusing. 'I couldn't get through the barrier.'

'I'm not surprised,' Dart replied, showing no concern whatsoever. In fact, he was inspecting the sleeve of his coat for lint. 'I sealed off the Underground shortly after I dealt with that little brat. You will remain here.'

'In your bog dreams,' Jareth retorted. 'I'm going back to Sarah.'

'I'm afraid I can't allow that. If you're going to be difficult, I'll limit your powers so all you can do is twirl crystals.'

'Why?' Jareth demanded. 'You didn't stop me from going to the Aboveground when my kingdom was stripped. Why keep me here? I'm no use to you now.'

'Because,' Dart said, his voice hard with purpose, 'I'm no longer in the mood to indulge this irresponsible behavior of yours. You shall remain here and forget about this human.'

'I shall never forget her,' Jareth declared. 'I love her, and nothing you can do will change that.'

'_Love_,' Dart sneered, 'is an illusion dreamed up by women who wish to enslave men and poets who have nothing better to do but write odes to it. Your so-called love has turned the Goblin Realm on its ear. Nothing like has ever occurred before. The Goblin Kingdom has no ruler, the goblins are running amuck, pigs and chickens everywhere, humans forcing us to do their bidding, and I…'

'Have to remarry,' Jareth finished. 'That's the real reason behind all of this, isn't it?'

Dart had the grace to look momentarily uncomfortable before he recovered his bravado and stated, 'I've done my part. I married the woman our father chose for me. Now, it's your turn to make a sacrifice for the Realm.'

'My turn?' Jareth echoed, scowling. 'I hope you're not suggesting…'

'The matchmaker will be here tomorrow, and we'll pick out a bride for you.'

'Are you mad? I'm not marrying anyone but Sarah.'

'Sarah is no longer available to you, my boy, so I suggest you stop all this moaning and groaning about love and resign yourself to being a Goblin King.'

'But I'm not a Goblin King,' Jareth pointed out. 'I was stripped of my Kingdom, remember?'

'How could I forget?' Dart muttered before saying, 'You might not be able to ascend the throne, but your child can.'

'You're a fine one to talk about responsibility,' Jareth accused. 'It's your responsibility to supply an heir, but you want to use me to do the dirty work for you.'

'I had an heir until you decided to bring a human to the Underground,' Dart pointed out, dropping his feet to the floor and leaning over his desk in his most menacing manner. 'We're in this predicament because of your foolishness so the way I see it, you ought to be the one to get us out of it.'

'I'd be happy to if you're willing to revoke a ridiculous law concerning humans in the Underground.'

'I will not rearrange the traditions and laws of the Underground because my fool of a brother is 'in love' with a human.'

'Then I won't agree to supply your throne with an heir,' Jareth retorted, planting his hands on the desk and leaning over just as menacingly. 'Even the High King cannot force someone to marry against his will, and even if you use some kind of spell to get me down that aisle, I shall not bed her. The throne will remain empty.'

The two brothers stared at each other, neither one wishing to be the first to retreat.

Finally Dart gritted. 'Get out of my sight.'

'Gladly,' Jareth gritted back.

'You've got two weeks to make up your mind,' Dart shouted as Jareth turned to leave. 'Either you can be sensible and agree or I'll be forced to take drastic measures.'

Jareth kept walking. He wasn't going to be there in two weeks so Dart's threat meant nothing to him. As he'd told Sarah, his brother only controlled the Goblin Realm. There were other ways to get back to the Aboveground, and he knew exactly where to find those ways. He headed for his father's library.

**SCENE CHANGE**

'Mom, I'm worried,' Sarah admitted.

'I would be too,' Linda told her as they drank tea in the penthouse's living room. 'Your brother's got goblin ears.'

Sarah glanced toward the hallway where Toby's bedroom was located. He'd gone to bed a little over a half hour ago.

'Shhhh,' she hushed. 'He might hear you. He's really uptight about those ears. I guess I'll have to keep him home from school tomorrow.'

'You can't even tell he's got them with that toque on, and toques are very popular with kids today. They even wear them in the summer. I doubt anyone will notice.'

'Yeah, but who know when the other parts of him are going to become goblin-like. Can you imagine being in Math class and suddenly you've grown a goblin nose?' She sighed, staring into her tea mug. 'I wish Jareth would return. He'd know what to do. It's unlike him to stay in the Underground so long. Something must be stopping him from leaving.'

'What could possibly stop him?' Linda asked. 'He's a Goblin King.'

'But he's not High King.'

'There's a High King?'

Sarah nodded. 'His older brother. He wasn't pleased when I called him here to remove the transfer spell from Jareth. In fact, he was rude and obstinate. Before leaving, he threatened to close all the entrances between here and the Underground if we ever bothered him again. I guess he doesn't like the Aboveground. Or humans.'

'Sounds like a perfect beast.'

'Actually he reminded me a great deal of Jareth the first time I saw him, very intimidating and mysterious, but unlike Jareth, he was angry, which made him ten times more frightening.' Sarah glanced up, her eyes anxious. 'What if he's follow through with his threat? What if he's closed the Underground? How will Jareth ever get back?'

Linda got up, coming over to sit on the sofa beside Sarah. Her arms went out. Sarah hadn't been hugged by her mother since she was ten years old, and it felt awkward at first, but she was too worried, to upset to hold herself back. She put her arms around her mom and buried her face against Linda's shoulder as tears squeezed out between tightly shut eyes.

'Don't worry, honey,' Linda murmured, stroking her dark hair. 'If I know Jareth, he'll move the stars to get back to you. I'm sure when you wake up in the morning he'll be right there beside you.'

But he wasn't beside her the next morning. Jareth's side of the bed was cold and empty, the sheets smooth and unwrinkled. She was tempted to call for the Goblin King, but thought better of it. She didn't want Toby to hear. He'd already been depressed at Jareth's absence when he'd gone to bed. Calling for the Goblin King would certainly alarm him.

As it turned out she didn't have to worry about alarming her brother. He had already put two and two together and come up with four.

'I wished him away from good, didn't I?' He asked as they sat at the breakfast table.

'I don't know,' she admitted. 'I'm sure he'll do everything in his power to get back to us or at least let us know what's going on.'

'I am a brat,' Toby mumbled, staring down at his cereal.

'Do you want to stay home today?'

He shook his head. 'No, I might as well get used to going to school as a goblin.'

Later as she watched Toby walk up the sidewalk to his school, toque pulled down tight, she could think of only one thing.

_Jareth, where are you?_


	2. Chapter 2 - The Wasteland

**CHAPTER TWO**

_The Wasteland_

'Sarah.'

She smiled in her sleep, her arms tightening around the pillow she clutched to her chest. It was Jareth's and still held his scent. It had been a small comfort, but a comfort all the same. She'd needed something to get her through the last three days…and maybe the rest of her life.

'Sarah.'

The voice came again, more persistent, more commanding. She frowned, turning her face into her pillow. She didn't want to wake up. In sleep, the pain didn't hurt so badly.

'_Sarah, open your bloody eyes!_'

Her eyes popped open. That was definitely Jareth's voice. Nobody else would be so impatient, so bossy. She sat up in bed as joy filled her. _He was back!_ But when her eyes scanned the room, she saw nothing but shadows.

'I'm over here,' he called.

She frowned.

'In the mirror.'

Getting up, she walked over to the vanity that she'd had since she was seven years old. It was one of the few things she'd kept when she'd sold her dad's house, and it was only piece of furniture to survive the fire. She sat down on the bench and then gasped when she saw Jareth's image in the mirror rather than her own.

'Jareth,' she breathed, reaching out a hand. Her fingers landed on cold, hard mirror.

'I know,' he said, seeing her frown, 'I want to touch you too, but this is the best I can do for now. It took three bloody days of searching through those books just to figure out how to use the mirror to talk to you. I don't think that library's seen a dust rag in a century. It's disgraceful.'

'Jareth,' Sarah said, not interested in dusty libraries, 'what happened? Why haven't you returned?'

She saw him scowl, darkly, fiercely. 'My brother has followed through with his threat. He's sealed the Goblin Realm off from the Aboveground. Even with my powers restored, I cannot penetrate the barrier between us.'

'But why?' She asked. 'Why would he do something like that? I know he threatened it, but this is a bit extreme, don't you think?'

He didn't answer immediately. As the silence continued, she looked at him more closely. The mirror wasn't the best means of communication. It made his features hazy, but she could see the tension in his jaw and the tight line of his lips. He didn't want to tell her. Why didn't he want to tell her? Anxiety gripped her like a hand squeezing a stress ball.

'Tell me,' she ordered.

Still Jareth remained silent.

'Jareth,' she chided, 'you of all people ought to know that I'm not made of crystal. I'm not going to shatter into a million pieces if you tell me. If I'm strong enough to defeat a Goblin King, I'm strong enough to hear why your brother is being an absolute jerk.'

The silence continued for another one or two seconds before Jareth finally spoke, his voice filled with scorn. 'He has the daft idea that I'm the perfect candidate to supply an heir for the throne.'

Sarah frowned. 'I don't understand.'

'He's called the royal matchmaker and is in the process of arranging a marriage for me.'

'A marriage?' She echoed, suddenly feeling like that crystal she'd been so scornful of as all her hopes and dreams came crashing down around her.

'That's his plan, yes,' Jareth admitted, 'but I'm not about to marrying anyone but you. I told Dart that the first day, but he's as stubborn as a bloody bog devil. He thinks he can will me to do as he wants, but my will is just as strong as his. I will not be forced to play stud for his nursery, not with any of these bog-faced Goblin women.'

But Sarah wasn't listening. Her crystal pieces had picked themselves up and were reforming themselves into a sparkling tower of rage. How dare that…_that Goblin King_…interfere with their lives? If he thought she was just going to sit back and let him rearrange her life, then he wasn't very smart. Either that or he was so arrogant, so accustomed to getting his way, that it had never occurred to him that anyone, let alone a human, would defy his decree.

'But your kingdom was stripped from you,' she pointed out, wanting to understand fully what was going on. 'How can you supply an heir?'

'Apparently there's a loop hole in the law,' Jareth replied. 'I can't ascend the throne, but my child can. It would appear that the sins of the father do not transfer to the child.'

'So because he doesn't want to remarry and supply his own heir, he's trying to make you do it for him.'

'Very succinctly put, my love. Your quick mind has always been one of the things I admire about you.'

'How do I get there?'

'What?'

'I said how do I get to the Underground,' she repeated. 'He's not getting away with this.'

'He won't,' Jareth assured her. 'I found more in those books than just how to talk through a mirror. Remember when I told you he can only seal the realm he controls?' At her nod, he continued. 'There are passages scattered throughout the Underground. I have located one in the Wasteland. I'm leaving for there tomorrow. If everything goes as planned, I ought to be back in the Aboveground in a few days. I'd be there sooner if I could fly, but I hurt my bloody wing trying to break through the barrier.'

'Wouldn't it be better if I joined you in the Underground?'

'We'd be safer in the Aboveground. He can't take me from there unless someone asks him, and no matter how angry he gets when he finds out what I've done, he won't set foot in your world. He detests humans.'

'But what about Toby?'

'What about him?' Jareth's voice was hard.

So, Sarah thought, he knows that Toby was responsible for his disappearance.

'He's turning into a goblin. First it was his ears. Now it's his nose. I had to keep him home from school today. Can you remove the spell?'

'And why would I do that?'

'Because you love his sister?' Sarah suggested hopefully.

He ignored her. 'And how can I be sure he won't wish me away again? I have found your brother to be most resourceful in his quest to be rid of me.'

'I understand how you feel,' she told him, her expression pleading,' but I think he's learned his lesson this time. He'd been very anxious for your return, and he's even acknowledged that he's a brat. I think that's a good start, don't you?'

There was a long pause and then Jareth sighed, running a hand through his hair. 'The truth is I can't remove it. Only the person who placed the spell can remove it.'

'Damn,' Sarah muttered, 'just like _Bewitched_. I was afraid of that.'

'I can turn him into something more pleasing such as a dog or a cat or a parakeet, but he'll never be a boy again.'

'Then we'll just have to join you in the Underground and get your brother to remove the spell.'

'Sarah, love,' Jareth said with a little laugh, 'I don't think that's a good idea. Dart's going to be furious when he finds out I've slipped out of his trap. He's more likely to turn all of us into goblins than remove the spell. Goblin Kings don't accept defeat well. You know that.'

'Maybe he needs to fall in love.'

Jareth's little laugh turned into a big one. 'That would be a magnificent sight to behold, I must say. My dear brother, who disdains even the existence of such a 'heinous' emotion, falling head over heels. Oh, my precious thing, I'm afraid such an occurrence is as unlikely as getting a goblin to take a bath.'

Sarah disagreed, but she wasn't going to argue about it. They had more important things to talk about.

'Tell me how to get to the Wasteland from here.'

'Sarah,' Jareth drawled warningly.

'Jareth, we can't give up so easily. In all the kingdoms of the Underground surely there's someone who can override a High King's spell.'

'It'll be dangerous,' he warned. 'I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't send bounty hunters out looking for me.'

'My darling Goblin King,' she said, smiling sweetly. 'You're talking to the girl who went 'through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered' to fight her way to the Goblin City. Do you think the Wasteland or your beloved brother scare me? Won't you join me on my next adventure?'

There was a silence as they looked at each other through the mirror, and then Jareth smiled. It was the sort of smile pirates in movies get just before they run up the crossbones and skull. 'Why not? I've never been one to do the prudent thing. Get something to write with, my love. Here are the coordinates.'

Sarah pulled out an eyebrow pencil and as he provided the information needed she wrote it down on her arm.

'I have no idea where those coordinates are in the Aboveground,' he told her. 'You'll need to look at a map.'

'Or a little thing called GPS.'

He lifted a hand, touching the mirror, his expression becoming serious. 'I'll be waiting for you.'

'I'll be there,' she promised, placing her own fingers against his on the mirror.

**SCENE CHANGE**

'This is the craziest thing I've ever done,' Linda declared as she, Sarah and Toby, now a full-fledged goblin, hiked through the sand dunes of Death Valley National Park. "I don't even like sand. Especially sand that might have scorpions living in it.'

'I told you that you didn't have to come with us,' Sarah said, her eyes on the GPS tracking unit in her hand.

'Of course, I had to come,' Linda retorted, wiping a hand across her sweaty brow. 'I had to make sure you got where you're going. I couldn't just send you out into the desert with a wave and a bye. This might be the last time I hear from you in a long while.'

'I'm hot,' Toby whined.

'We're all hot,' Sarah replied. 'Have some more water.'

'I've already drank all there is.'

Sarah whirled around. 'You've drank all our water?'

'Yep.'

'We might need that in the Wasteland.'

'Sorry,' Toby mumbled, looking down at his green belly, which stuck out from beneath his T-shirt. 'I was hot.'

It would appear that becoming a goblin had dropped his IQ by a few points, Sarah thought, returning to her GPS unit. She didn't know what to expect in the Wasteland, and here they were going in without water. Heck, he probably ate all their food too. His appetite had become voracious since sprouting the belly. She sure hoped that nothing had detained Jareth in meeting them or they'd be in serious trouble.

'We're almost there,' she announced, taking a few more steps before stopping. 'This is it. These are the coordinates that Jareth gave me.'

Linda glanced around. 'It's just a bunch of sand. Didn't he tell you how to activate this…' she searched for the word, 'entrance.'

Even after seeing Toby turn into a goblin right before her eyes, she still had a hard time believing there was an Underground. Sarah wondered if that was part of the reason she'd joined them on this trek. To see if they really did disappear into another world.

'I don't think his books provided that information.'

'How about trying 'open sesame',' Toby suggested.

'Oh, Toby, be serious,' Sarah snapped.

She was feeling just as hot as the rest of them. Although they were wearing hats, the sun was still powerful, beating down upon them like a punishing yellow taskmaster. She would have liked a drink of water, but that was apparently out of the question. Taking off her hat, she wiped a forearm across her forehead as she took a look around at their surroundings. Sand dunes with some buttes in the distance.

'Um, Sarah,' Toby ventured.

'What?'

'You're sinking.'

'What?'

'You're sinking,' Toby repeated. 'I can no longer see your ankles.'

Sarah glanced down. He was right. Her ankles had disappeared, and her knees were fast on the way to joining them.

'What is it?' Linda cried, reaching out a hand to help her. 'Quicksand?'

'Too dry for quicksand,' Sarah replied, struggling against the downward suck. 'I think it might be the entrance we're looking for.'

'But you'll suffocate,' Linda exclaimed, pulling at Sarah with all her might. 'Oh, my God,' she gasped, letting go, 'I'm sinking too.'

All of them were sinking. Instinctively, they threw out their arms, clawing at the surrounding sand, desperately trying to pull themselves onto solid ground, but it was too late. They continued sinking further and further.

'Hold your breath,' Sarah shouted. 'We're going under.'

Afterwards Sarah likened the experience to falling through an hourglass. As the sand dropped into the lower chamber, everything in the upper chamber went with it. Sarah, her brother and mother just happened to be in the upper chamber. One by one they were sucked through a narrow section and then landed on another pile of sand. They coughed and sputtered as sand continued to shower down on top of them. Finally, it stopped, and they lay on their backs looking up at a bright blue sky.

Sarah sat up, looking around. Sand dunes stretched for miles around. They were in the middle of a desert. A big desert, she decided, one that could rival the Sahara. This was definitely not good. No water and from the looks of it, no shelter.

'Where are we?' Toby asked, sitting up.

'I would guess it's the Wasteland.'

'The Wasteland,' Linda cried, jumping to her feet. 'I can't be in the Wasteland. I have a performance next Friday night.'

'Looks like you're going to miss it, Mom,' Sarah said, getting up as well.

'I've never missed a performance in my life.'

'You've never been in the Underground before.'

Linda stared at her, clearly dismayed. 'I'm not going to be stuck here forever, am I?'

'I doubt it,' Sarah replied, picking up the backpack and hat that had followed her through the hourglass. 'Jareth says there are passages all over the place. We just have to find one that will send you back.'

'What about that one?' Linda asked, pointing upward.

Sarah considered it. 'I don't think it works in the direction you want to go. I think it's an entrance, not an exit.'

'Wonderful,' Linda muttered. 'I don't even believe in the place, and here I am, trapped in Goblin Land. My agent will never believe this.'

'Wasteland,' Sarah corrected.

Linda sent her a glare.

'Where's Jareth,' Toby asked, rolling onto his side and then onto his feet. Once again, his belly had gotten in the way. 'You said he was going to meet us here. You said he could turn me into something other than a goblin.'

His tone was accusing.

'Well, he must have gotten delayed,' Sarah snapped, pulling her hat down low on her brow. She was sick and tired of all the whining. 'Come on. Let's go. We can't stay here.'

'Do you think that's wise,' Linda asked, looking upward once more. She obviously didn't want to leave the only way back to the Aboveground that she knew. 'Don't they tell people who are lost to stay in one place?'

'Look around, Mom,' Sarah said, flinging her arms wide. 'How long do you think we'll be able to survive in terrain like this, especially after Toby drank all our water? We've got to try to find shelter until the heat of the day is past.'

She started walking. Toby fell in line, and Linda, after giving the sky one last longing look, hurried after them.

They walked for what seemed like forever, their feet sinking into the sand, sweat dampening their shirts and hatbands. If possible, the sun seemed ever hotter than it had been in Death Valley. Sarah was just beginning to think they'd never make it when a cluster of rocks came into view. She headed for them, quickening her pace.

As they got closer, she could see nooks and crannies, dark openings that were large enough for someone to squeeze between. _Don't think what else might be in here_, she told herself as she crawled into one of the larger hollows.

'We'll stay here until the sun's lower in the sky,' she told Linda and Toby once they were all squeezed inside. 'Then I'll go out and look for Jareth.'

She must have fallen asleep for a few hours because when she woke it felt cooler, and the tiny cave was dimmer, more shadowed. Leaving Toby and Linda dozing, she wiggled from between the rocks and stood on the sand outside, looking around. It was cooler but still warm. The sun was low on the horizon, looking like a fat orange ball upon the dunes. Slinging her backpack over one shoulder, she began to walk.

She had only gone a couple of miles when she began feeling light-headed. The lack of water combined with the extreme heat had finally caught up with her. She sank to her knees in the sand and then fell forward. Barely conscious, she opened her eyes and was surprised to see the figure of a horse and rider. Was she hallucinating?

They came closer and closer. The rider's flowing white burnoose was wrapped protectively around head and shoulders, obscuring his features. As she watched, he dismounted, coming toward her. She wanted to say something, but her parched throat and dry tongue wouldn't let her. Just as he knelt down beside her, darkness swept over her, and she no longer cared about the horse or rider.

When she woke she was no longer lying face down in the sand. She was lying on a thin, woven mat, and the place where she lay was dark except for a single lantern hanging from a pole. She squinted, her eyes studying the walls enclosing her. A tent, she wondered just as one wall was tossed aside, and the man in a white burnoose entered.

She was instantly wary.

'Who are you?' She croaked. 'Where am I?'

He didn't answer. He just continued walking until he towered over her.

'If you don't answer me, I'll scream,' she threatened, shrinking back into the mat as he dropped to his knee beside her.

She gasped as one hard arm went under her back, pulling her up against him. Is this how Lady Diana Mayo felt when Ahmed Ben Hassan had clutched her to him in _The Sheik_, Sarah wondered, feeling giddy.

'Still threatening me with screams, Sarah?'

'Jareth?'

He pushed back the hood of his burnoose. Pale hair glimmered in the flickering light of the lantern. Eyeteeth flashed in a devilish grin.

'Were you expecting Lawrence of Arabia perhaps?' He asked as his mouth took hers.

'No,' she admitted when she had a chance to come up for air, 'Rudolph Valentino.'

**SCENE CHANGE**

'What delayed you?'

They were sitting around a small fire that Jareth had built. She was surprised that he'd chosen to build it the old-fashioned way instead of using his magic, but perhaps he'd gotten accustomed to not having his powers. Whatever the reason, the fire was a welcomed addition. As soon as the sun had gone down, a chill had quickly entered the tent.

'I wasn't delayed,' Jareth told her, sounding slightly offended. 'You weren't where you were supposed to be. You kept moving around.'

'Don't tell my mother that. She wanted to stay at the entrance.'

'Smart mother,' Jareth retorted before saying, 'Crystals aren't as accurate as GPS, and in a desert where there's no real landmarks, it's a little difficult to locate someone. All I could see was blue sky and sand around you, but once we found your mother and brother, it was only a matter of time before I found you.' He sent her a stern look. 'It was very foolish of you to into a desert without water.'

'We had water, but Toby drank it all. He ate all our food too.'

'I should have warned you about goblins. If you let them, they'll eat and drink everything in sight.'

'That would have been helpful to know before we started this adventure.'

'I was a little busy at the time. Someone's delightful brother had wished me away.'

They stared at each other over the fire, tension crackling between them. The last few weeks had been difficult on both of them and tempers were primed to flare at the slightest hint of rebuke.

Finally Sarah sighed. 'I'm sorry. It's been a tough day. It's not easy guiding a goblin and an actress who has a performance next Friday through a desert.'

'And I'm…' he paused as if having difficulty getting the word out, 'sorry too. I'm a little uptight as well.'

'So,' Sarah said brightly, trying to disperse the tension, 'whose tent are we in?'

'The tent is mine, but I had to purchase it and rent the one for your mother and brother are in from our hosts. The horse too. They're even more avaricious than that scab, Haggle.'

'I didn't find Hoggle to be particularly concerned with money.'

'You weren't paying him to spray fairies.'

'Well, if you don't like paying for things, why didn't you just use your magic?'

'I've gotten used to not using it,' he said with a shrug, 'and besides, it's best not to draw attention to myself.'

'You mean in case your brother has sent bounty hunters? You think he'd do that?'

'He sealed the Goblin Realm to keep us apart. What do you think?'

She didn't have to answer that question. They both knew the answer. Dart was capable of anything.

'So,' she said, once again trying to dispense the tension, 'who are these hosts of ours?'

'They call themselves Sand Lords. I ran into them shortly after entering the Wasteland. They're friendly enough if you don't mind paying them for everything. From what I can gather, they roam about the Wasteland, herding sand goats and weaving the hair into blankets and mats which they sell at a market beside what they call the Great Sea.'

'There's a sea?' She asked excitedly.

'Would you like to see it?'

Some of the excitement left her. She looked down at her hands, which were twisting the tassels on the mat she was sitting on. 'I'd love to, but…'

'But?'

She looked up at him. 'There are some things we need to take care of before we can even think of exploring.'

'Such as?'

'How can you ask me that? My brother's a goblin, and my mom needs to be back in the Aboveground by next Friday.'

'Oh that.'

Sarah felt her temper flaring again. How could he be so blasé about her family's predicament? Of course, she reminded herself, their predicament was their own fault. If Toby hadn't wished Jareth away, he wouldn't be a goblin, and if her mother hadn't insisted on going with them to Death Valley, she wouldn't be in the Underground. But if he was going to marry her, that meant he married her family as well, didn't it? At the very least, he ought to be concerned because she was concerned.

'Let's concentrate on my mom's problem first,' she suggested, deciding to give him another chance to cooperate before letting her temper take over. 'How do we get her back to the Aboveground?'

'In one of the passages.'

'Do you know where the closest one is?'

'The one you came out of.'

'I don't think it works as an exit. I think it only works as an entrance.'

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. 'I hadn't considered that, but it's logical. I shall have to consult the book.'

'Do you have it with you?'

He looked at her as though she'd asked him if he knew how to sing. 'Come now, Sarah, what do you take me for? Of course, I have it with me. Dart has no use for it so I pinched it.'

'Great,' she exclaimed. 'Now how about Toby?'

'Sarah, love, I told you…'

'Yes, I know, you can't change him back into a boy. We have to get Dart to do it or find someone whose power will override the Goblin High King.' She sent him a hopeful look. 'I don't suppose you'd consider returning to the Goblin Realm…'

'Absolutely not,' he retorted. 'You're not the one being drafted into stud service.'

'Ok, ok,' she said, raising her hands as if to ward off further complaints. 'We'll head for the sea. Perhaps someone in this market knows where we could get a goblin changed back into a boy. Markets always have shady characters hanging about who'll talk for the right price. At least they do in American movies. In the meantime, how about changing him into something else.'

'How about a bog devil? He's already halfway there.'

'Jareth,' she drawled warningly.

'Alright, alright,' he muttered. 'I'll let him chose.'

Silence fell between them, a tense, heavy silence that had Sarah sending him furtive glances beneath her lashes. He sat on the other side of the fire, wrapped in his burnoose, his expression remote as he brooded on some unknown thought. What was it about the Underground that brought out the worse in him, she wondered.

She rubbed her arms. 'It's cold.'

'I'll get some more firewood.'

He made a move as if to get up.

'Ah, no,' she said, biting her lip as her eyes fell to the mat. How did she get across to him what she wanted? She had hoped he would get up and come share his burnoose with her. 'Am I being obtuse?'

She looked up. He was staring at her intently. To her horror, she felt a blush rising to her cheeks. Geez, they were already lovers, she thought, why the heck was she acting like…Lady Diana Mayo?

'Yeah, I guess you are.'

'All you have to do is ask.'

'Jareth,' she wailed as the color in her cheeks deepened.

He laughed, uncurling himself from his mat and coming over to her. Reaching down, he lifted her to her feet and into his arms.

'Someday you'll ask and not blush,' he promised.


	3. Chapter 3 - The Wager

**CHAPTER THREE**

_The Wager_

'Ok, Toby,' Jareth said, drawing his horse to a stop, 'what will it be?'

They were several miles outside the Sand Lords' camp, well away from curious eyes. He dismounted, leaving Sarah in the saddle as he strode over to Toby who was sitting on a fat, desert mule. Linda was beside him on a horse. Two more forced purchases, he thought irritably. It was a good thing he'd pinched several bags of coin from Dart's treasury or they'd be in one hell of a bog by now. He could use his powers as Sarah had suggested, but it was risky, very risky, especially around people who would sell their grandmother if they thought they could make a profit.

Toby stared at him. 'Huh?'

The transformation was complete. Toby was a full-fledged goblin. The mind was the last thing to go.

'Personally, I think you make an exceptionally good goblin,' Jareth continued, 'much more manageable, but your sister feels you'd be better served as something else. Make it a good choice because I'm only going to do this once. And,' he added with a warning glare, 'whatever you say, don't say chicken.'

'Don't give him any ideas,' Sarah called from atop the horse.

'I think,' Toby said slowly, sliding off the mule onto the sand, 'I'd like to be a horse. A_ talking_ horse.'

_Bloody bog_, Jareth thought, annoyed with himself,_ I should have done this earlier. Then I wouldn't have had to buy another blasted horse from those desert pirates._

Pulling a crystal from beneath his burnoose, Jareth twirled for a few seconds and then hurled it at the goblin.

'Wow, this is so cool,' Toby cried as he pranced around, shaking his sandy mane. 'Look how fast I can run!'

He took off across the desert, turned and then galloped back, tossing his head and stamping his feet. His excitement faded, however, when Jareth produce saddle, bit and reins.

'Hey,' he protested as the bit was shoved between his teeth, 'this is uncomfortable.'

'You're a horse, aren't you?' Jareth asked, swinging Sarah down from his own horse. 'Horses wear saddles and bridles.'

'But I wanted to be a wild horse, you know, like on the documentaries, roaming free and stuff. I thought I'd call myself Windstalker.'

'Then you should have been specific.' With another swing, Sarah landed on Toby's back. 'You can carry your sister. It'll take the burden off my horse.'

'But…'

Jareth gave the boy his best Goblin King scowl. 'Would you prefer to be a goblin again?'

'No, no, I'm ok,' Toby hastily assured him. 'I just have to get used to it. That's all.'

They had been riding for an hour or so when Sarah ease up beside him. 'How long will it take us to get to the Great Sea?'

'The Sand Lords said it would take two days.'

She glanced at her mother. He knew what she was thinking. Linda had fallen into a brooding silence. Whether it was shock from finding herself in a strange place or just the prima donna sulks, she'd been usually silent, which obviously worried her daughter.

'Did you get a chance to check the book?'

'I was rather preoccupied last night.' He smiled as he saw color rush to her face. 'I'll check tonight. There won't be any of that sort of thing with everyone crammed into one tent. I image I'll even have to sleep on my own mat.' His voice dropped suggestively. 'Unless you'd like to find out what it's like to make love under the stars.'

'Jareth,' she hissed, nodding at Toby's pale mane, 'he can hear you.'

'Should I have made him a deaf talking horse?'

'Oh, you're impossible,' she snapped, spurring Toby forward as his laughter followed her.

All in all it took three days to reach the Great Sea or at least the town that clung to its banks like a fat brown barnacle. As they entered its busy, brick-paved streets, Jareth instantly felt wary, like one of those jackalopes that his brother was so fond of hunting. He would have preferred to remain in open country where any strangers could be easily detected. The crowded streets and dark alleys made him uneasy, and he found himself constantly glancing behind as though expecting someone to be watching.

And there was someone watching, many someones. The locals seemed unusually interested in the newcomers, their dark eyes boldly staring as they passed by their store fronts and booths. The town seemed to have more than their fair share of 'shady characters'. They slouched in every alley and smoked long, white pipes on every corner.

Coming here was a mistake, Jareth decided as they pressed deeper into the town's center. Unfortunately, he'd had no choice. They must book passage on a ship in order to reach the nearest exit to the Aboveground, and when Linda left, they were _all_ leaving. Sarah would protest his high-handedness in making that decision for them, but Sarah didn't understand the danger. She thought because she'd defeated him, she could defeat Dart as well. Jareth, having lived centuries with his brother, knew better.

'Where are we going?' She asked.

'To book passage on a ship.'

He could see the eagerness in her eyes. Despite their predicament, she was enjoying the adventure. His own inclination for adventure had been smothered under the growing sense that they were being hunted, but hers had continued to thrive. Ah, foolish girl, he thought, feeling very old all of a sudden, this is how you got in trouble in the labyrinth. She couldn't resist a challenge, and Dart had become a challenge.

'Will it take us to the exit?'

'Yes.'

'I'll go tell Mom. Maybe it'll cheer her up.'

She started to turn Toby toward the rear where Linda was plodding along when Jareth's voice stopped her. 'She's not going to like how she has to go back.'

'Why?'

'It's in the sea.'

'What is?'

'The whirlpool.'

He saw the color drain out of her face. 'Do we have any idea where this whirlpool will put her in the Aboveground?'

'Not without maps or GPS.'

'Then she could end up in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.'

'That's a risk we're going to have to take.'

'We?'

'We're going with her. All of us.'

'Jareth…'

He turned in his saddle, capturing her eyes with his. He had to convey to her in no uncertain terms the danger they were in. 'Don't argue with me, Sarah, or I promise you that you'll be very, very sorry.'

'Are you threatening me?'

'No, my brother is. We're being hunted.'

'How can you know that?' She said with a little laugh. 'Your crystals?'

'I can feel it. We Fae are more sensitive to such things. If we don't leave now, we won't get another opportunity. Are you willing to throw away our future together because of ego?'

'Ego? Me?'

'Yes, you. You think because you defeated me, you can defeat Dart. There was a big difference between me and him, Sarah. I was in love with you. He isn't. He doesn't believe in love. Pretty speeches will not sway him from his purpose. He will separate us without a thought or a care. I escaped him this time, but he will take no chances the next time. My powers are great, but his are greater. Although he can't force me to marry, there are ways of ensuring my cooperation. Don't you understand, Sarah,' his voice dropped, becoming husky with emotion, 'all he has to do is hold you as collateral. I would do anything for you. If he doesn't know that now, it won't be long before he does.'

She stared at him. He could see the doubt in her eyes, but he also saw the dawning realization of who and what she was up against.

'Ok,' she said, 'we'll leave.'

But her assent came too late. As he was on board a ship making arrangements, a sudden commotion on the dock below caught his attention. There was yelling and screaming and the whinnied of a horse. He turned to go but the man behind the grimy desk pulled out a pistol, aiming it at his heart.

'I wouldn't do that if I were you, mate,' he growled. 'And don't try any of that fancy magic of yours either. We've got your piece of fluff down below, and any funny moves on your part, we'll cut her up real bad, hear? Be a shame to mark up that pretty face, don't cha think?'

**SCENE CHANGE**

Dart stared at the group before him. He'd been expecting Jareth and the woman he called Sarah, but what the hell was he going to do with a horse and another female who looked like an older version of the mouthy one? By the bog, she was even glaring at him with the same green eyes. He didn't mind glares, they were after all testaments that he was doing his job properly, but what had he done to warrant this woman's enmity. Some bizarre human mannerism no doubt, he decided, turning his attention to his brother.

'So,' he drawled, slinging one leg over the arm of his throne as he leaned back to contemplate the group, 'you chose to defy me and bring that human to the Underground again.'

'That human has a name,' Jareth retorted.

'Ah, yes,' Dart murmured, tapping his crop lazily on his boot. 'Sarah, wasn't it? I'm well aware of which one she is, but who are these other two,' he looked down his nose at Linda and Toby, 'persons?'

To everyone's surprise, Linda stepped forward. Apparently she had finally awakened from her stupor. 'My name is Linda Williams, and you're detaining us illegally. I demand that you release us at once. I have a performance next Friday, and I never miss a performance.'

Dart stared at her, flabbergasted. No one spoke to the High King in such a manner. His eyes went to Jareth. 'Who is this woman?'

'Sarah's mother.'

'I should have known,' Dart said with a snort. 'I can see where she gets her sparkling personality.'

'Now, look here,' Linda began.

'No,' Dart roared, getting to his feet in one fluid motion and pointing his crop at Linda, 'you look here, wench. _I'm_ the law around here so I can detain you whenever and however I choose, and if you don't shut your gob, I'll clap you in irons and send you to the dungeon for a fortnight. Then what will become of your precious performance?'

'Don't you dare threaten me you…you…beast!'

With supreme effort, Dart controlled his temper. He could not let this woman and her mouth distract him from his purpose. He'd deal with her soon enough. Right now he had to address his brother's continued rebellion.

Taking a deep breath, he turned once again to Jareth. 'And what about the horse? Where'd he come from?'

'You know him better as the screamer. I turned him into something a bit more useful.'

'So,' Dart drawled, descending the stairs to his throne until he was standing face to face with his brother, 'you brought the entire family. How domesticated you've become. Are there any more humans running free and unencumbered in the Underground that I should know about?'

'No,' the answer was short and curt.

'Thank the bog for that,' Dart declared. 'I was afraid I was going to call in the exterminators.'

'If you'll remove the barrier between our worlds, I'd be more than happy to remove them,' Jareth offered.

'And remove yourself along with them,' Dart finished. 'Don't worry, little brother, I shall indeed remove the barrier long enough to get rid of them, but as for you, you will remain. As the screamer so succinctly put it, you don't belong there. You belong here, and here you shall stay.'

'You might force me to stay, but I will just escape again…and again…and again.'

Jareth's voice and expression left no doubt that he would do what he said he would. Dart had never known his brother to be a liar or a coward. Obviously, forcing his will upon Jareth was not going to work. It only made him more determined to resist. Therefore, he must be clever. He must attack at his weakest point.

His eyes shifted to the younger of the two women, to Sarah. Like her mother, she was glaring at him with hard green eyes. What was it about this woman that caused Jareth to love her so fiercely? She was attractive enough, but so were other women. Her mother, for example, was just as attractive, if one could overlook her mouth, he thought acidly, but Jareth was not claiming undying love for her. It made no sense to him. In fact, it baffled him.

The way he saw it, he could use Sarah in two ways. He could hold the girl and threaten her harm if Jareth did not comply, or he could…he paused, considering. Yes, he mused, nodding his head as an idea formed and grew. It was risky, but as a gaming man, he was not opposed to risk. Actually, he enjoyed it, craved it, and this method would certainly offer more amusement than stretching a girl on the rack.

And when they lost, there would be no moaning and groaning because he had been more than fair. Their fate would depend upon this great 'love' of theirs.

Clasping his hands behind his back, Dart strode back and forth in front of the little group, his mind plotting and scheming, working out the details. Finally, he stopped and turned to face his brother.

'Let me make sure I understand. You refuse to marry a woman from the Underground, a woman of your own kind because you claim to love this human, this Sarah Williams. Is that correct?'

'Yes.'

'Would you be willing to put that so-called love to the test?'

'What kind of test?' It was Sarah who answered, not Jareth.

'Interesting,' Dart murmured, shifting his gaze to her. An expression of curiosity had replaced the green-eyed glare. 'Are you a gambler, Sarah Williams? Do you like a challenge?'

'It depends on what the challenge is,' she replied.

'Sarah,' Jareth said warningly, his eyes on his brother.

'Ah, come now, Jareth, give the girl the opportunity to at least hear what I'm offering.'

'I know how you gamble,' Jareth retorted, 'and it's usually with two aces up your sleeve. You rarely accept a bet that you're not sure of winning.'

'I want to hear what he's offering,' Sarah interjected. 'There's no harm in hearing it, is there?'

Before Jareth could answer, Dart said, 'I'm offering you a wager, a very generous wager. If you should win, I will revoke the law against humans in the Underground. I will also return the Goblin Kingdom to Jareth's control, and, last but not least, I shall throw you the biggest wedding the Goblin Realm has ever known.'

'What about Toby?'

'What about him?'

'You must remove the goblin spell from him.'

'Sarah,' the horse whispered, 'I'm pretty happy as a horse. Windstalker is such a cooler name than Toby.'

'I'm not having a horse for a brother, if I can help it,' she hissed back. 'It's your fault we're in the mess so shut your gob.' She turned back to Dart. 'Will you remove the spell?'

'You drive a hard bargain, my dear, but, yes,' Dart agreed, 'I shall turn this delightful horse back into a horrid little boy.'

'And what happens if we lose?' Jareth's voice came hard and clear, throwing a wet blanket on the fire Dart had kindled.

'So suspicious,' Dart sighed.

'I know you too well, brother. You were the one who taught me about wagers.'

'Obviously, I didn't teach you well enough,' Dart retorted, 'since you lost your bet in the labyrinth to a mere child.'

'What happens if we lose?' Jareth repeated.

'Sarah and her family returns to the Aboveground. After their departure, I will seal the barrier once again, and you, little brother, will forget this so-called love of yours and chose a wife from the Underground. I think the terms are more than fair. I stand to lose much more than you.'

'It depends on your perspective and how dearly you hold the thing to be lost.'

'Well, let's put it this way, if you don't accept the wager, I shall put this girl on the rack and tighten it for each hour you delay in acceding to my demands.'

'Oh, my God,' Linda exclaimed, 'he's a barbarian, an absolute barbarian. I thought this kind of sort went out with the Goths. Sarah,' she said, turning to her daughter, her eyes troubled, 'why in the world would you want to stay in a place like this? Let's go back home.'

'Listen to your mother,' Dart urged, 'I'll send you back today, this very minute, and I'll even turn the screamer back into a brat for you.'

'I won't leave without Jareth.'

'It would appear, wench, that the younger generation doesn't share our practical view of such matters.'

Linda glared at Dart. 'I don't share anything with you, sir, and if you call me wench one more time, you're going to regret it. Go ahead and tell them the details of the wager.' She put an arm around Sarah's waist. 'I, for one, intend to do everything in my power to make sure they win.'

'Me too,' Toby, or rather Windstalker called out.

'Your loyalty is touching,' Dart mocked before turning on his heel and ascending to the throne once again. He seated himself, saying, 'Invitations to a fortnight of festivities at the High King's Castle will be sent to all the eligible women in the Goblin Realm. It will begin with a ball, in which those ladies will present themselves to my brother. Being the affectionate and generous brother that I am, I will allow him to choose his own bride from those assembled. You, Sarah Williams, will be among those presenting themselves. I will provide appropriate attire, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. If you succeed in getting my brother to propose to you by the end of that fortnight, you win the wager.'

They all stared at him, and he chuckled at his own brilliance.

Finally Jareth, wet blanket that he was, pointed out. 'Where's the wager in that? Of course, I will ask her to marry me. I already have.'

'Excellent point,' Dart concurred. 'We must make the competition fair. We can't allow Sarah to have an unfair advantage; therefore, we must arrange things so that it'll be as though you're meeting for the first time.'

'And how do we do that?' Jareth asked, his voice dripping scorn.

'We remove her from your memory.'

'Oh, not that again,' Sarah exclaimed. 'We've already overcome the memory loss thing.'

'This would not be the same thing,' Dart told her. 'I will take Jareth back to a time before he ever knew you or dreamed of you or obsessed over you, whatever you want to call this odd behavior. You will have had no influence on him. For him it will truly be meeting you for the first time…along with several other beautiful young ladies all vying for his attention. I wonder,' he murmured, tapping his chin, 'if he had not pursued you so obsessively, would you even be 'in love'? But now, Sarah Williams, you will be the pursuer. And I'm curious. Truly I am. Is your love strong enough to survive? In different circumstances will he love you or someone else? Was it his will that chose you or something,' he paused, waving a lazy hand toward the ceiling, 'that was written in the stars?

There was a long, heavy silence and then Sarah's voice came loud and clear, 'We accept the wager.'

Jareth looked at her, clearly outraged. 'Sarah, you have no right to accept on my behalf.'

'Don't you trust yourself?'

'Of course, I do,' he snapped. 'I would love you in any lifetime and any world, but you don't understand my brother. Believe me, it will not be a level playing field. I cheated in the labyrinth. I stole time from you and had Hoggle give you the poisoned peach. Where do you think I learned such tactics? He will do everything I did and more.'

'But don't you see, Jareth,' she said, her eyes pleading with him to understand, 'if we win, the law against humans will be revoked, and your kingdom will be restored.'

'I don't want my kingdom. I want the life we had in the Aboveground before Toby wished this upon us.'

She took a step closer to him, touching his sleeve. 'The way I see it, we don't have much choice. If we don't accept, he will use me to force you to marry whomever he chooses. At least this way, we have a chance to control our own future.'

Jareth stared at her for a long moment and then turned away. He took a few steps and then stopped, hands on hips, head bowed as though in thought. The other occupants of the room waited in tense silence. Finally, he turned back, and they could all see the hostility in his eyes as he addressed his brother.

'As Sarah pointed out, we have little choice but to accept your wager. It's a diabolical plan, one of your best, but I call upon the stars see what you have done and repay you for your perfidy. May you be inflicted with the same 'heinous' emotion that we are inflicted with and may it bring you nothing but pain.'

'Are you placing a curse upon me?'

'Call it whatever you like.'

The two brothers glared at one another.

'Do you accept the wager?'

'Yes.'

'Very well then,' Dart said, raising from his throne. 'At midnight tonight, your mind will go back to a time when Sarah Williams did not exist. As for the humans, they will stay at the guest cottage until such time as the festivities begin. At that point they shall stay at the castle with the other guests. There will be no contact between the two of you until the night of the ball.'

'And what of the other women,' Sarah demanded. 'Will they have magical powers? As you said, the competition must be fair. If I don't have magical powers, they cannot have them either.'

'Some may dabble in potions and amulets, but they do not have the powers that Jareth and I have. Only the royal family has such abilities. But to ease your mind, I shall make it clear that anyone caught using any form of magic will be banned from court. Does that satisfy you, Sarah Williams?

'Yes.'

'Then there is nothing more to be said.' Dart clapped his hands and a goblin appeared. 'Have the guest cottage prepared for these humans. And have a carriage brought around.'

The goblin bowed until his large, bulbous nose nearly touched the floor and then scurried out.

'The least you can do is give them a few minutes alone,' Linda interjected. 'This may be their last moment together.'

'Believe me, _Madam_, I'm planning on it.'

She looked at him with such accusing eyes that he didn't something he never did. He relented.

'Oh, very well,' he muttered, descending the steps, 'I shall see you and the horse to the carriage. Hell, I'll probably have to see to it myself anyway. Those goblins never do anything right.'

A few seconds later, Jareth and Sarah were alone in the throne room.

'I should have listened to you,' Sarah said sadly. 'We should have never come to the Underground. It would have been better if you had come to us.'

Jareth's mouth ticked up into a rueful smile. 'Let's not waste the time we have left with recriminations or apologies.' He reached out, touching the side of her face. 'Whatever happens, this Goblin King will love you until his dying day.'

'Oh, Jareth,' Sarah cried, rushing into his arms. 'I don't want to lose you.'

'Then don't lose the wager,' he said softly. 'I believe in you, Sarah. You defeated a Goblin King. You can defeat a High King. Our future depends on it. Whoever you meet in a few weeks from now, you must pursue him as I pursued you.'

'Whoever I meet?'

He sighed. 'I have a feeling that you will not like me very much.'

'Why?'

'Did you like me that first time you met me in your parent's bedroom?'

'I found you frightening, and very intimidating,' she said slowly, frowning, 'but I didn't dislike you. I suppose even then I was attracted to you.'

'I will not be like the Goblin King you first met,' he warned her. 'Frightening though he was, he'd been softened by his love for you. The Goblin King you are about to meet won't have that love to influence him. He will be very much like Dart. You must remember that I and the man you are about to meet are one in the same person, and he can become the man you now love.' He took her by the shoulders, looking down at her with fierce eyes. 'Promise me that you'll remember that.'

'I promise.'

He studied her for a long moment, his eyes seeming to drink her in as thought memorizing her face, and then his head dropped, and he kissed her in a way he'd never kissed her before. It was tender. It was gentle. It was forever. Then his head lifted, and he was turning away. 'Go, Sarah,' he ordered, his voice breaking. 'Go now.'

She turned and fled from the throne room, tears streaming down her cheeks. Once outside the huge wood doors, she dropped to her knees as the tears turned to sobs. She stayed there for some time before finally standing up and making her way to the courtyard where the carriage waited.

As Dart was handing her inside, she said, 'May I make one final request?'

He raised a pale brow. 'Perhaps. What is it you want?'

'If we lose, don't ever return his mind to the present. It'll be easier for him if he doesn't know what he's lost.'

'And you, Sarah Williams, do you ask the same for yourself?'

She settled herself on the cushioned seat beside her mother before turning her head to look at him through the open door. 'No, I don't make that request for myself. I always want to remember him and love we shared. I, at least, will not be married to someone else. He will, and it'll make him doubly unhappy.'

'Very well,' Dart agreed, closing the carriage door. 'I'll be as you request.'

He stood in the courtyard long after the carriage had disappeared, his thoughts troubled. The girl's demeanor and request had surprised him. Her one thought was of Jareth, not herself, and Dart found that puzzling, very, very puzzling, and it bothered him long after midnight had come and gone, and his plan had been put in motion.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Fickle Hand of Love

**CHAPTER FOUR**

_The Fickle Hand of Love_

'Hurry up, Mom,' Sarah cried, looking up the staircase, which led to the second floor of the cottage, 'we're already late! The ball started an hour ago!'

Linda appeared at the top of the stairs, dressed in a midnight blue gown that complimented her creamy complexion beautifully. 'Haven't you learned anything as an actress?'

Sarah frowned. 'What do you mean?'

'Entrances matter,' Linda told her as she reached the bottom of the stairs. 'You enter with everyone else, you're just another face in the crowd to him. You enter by yourself, then you're 'the' face in the crowd. Remember Cinderella, honey.'

'How can I forget her,' Sarah muttered, wiggling her toes. 'I think I'm wearing her glass slippers. You'd think a High King with magical powers could get my shoe size right.'

'He probably did it on purpose,' Linda said, pulling on long white gloves. 'Jareth warned us that he'd cheat, the old goat.'

'Mom, he's only slightly older than you,' Sarah protested before adding, 'well, at least, he only _looks_ a few years older than you. I think in reality he's got a couple centuries on you.'

'Like I said,' Linda declared, clasping a sapphire and diamond bracelet on her wrist, 'the old goat.'

'You really don't like him, do you?'

'I detest him. What he's done to you and Jareth is reprehensible, and I hope those stars Jareth spoke of pays him back in spades. Although,' her eyes went to Sarah's attire, 'he has shown himself unusually generous as far as our clothing and lodgings. That gown you're wearing suits you perfectly. I can't imagine any man not noticing you in it. It makes me wonder if he's rigged the seams to burst at midnight.'

Sarah laughed. 'Mom, you're priceless. I'm so glad you stayed to help me.'

'After I saw what you were up against, I had to stay. Don't worry, honey,' Linda said as they headed out the door and into the waiting carriage, 'I'll be keeping an eye on that reprobate. He won't be able to cheat without me seeing it.'

'Do you think that will stop him?'

'Probably not but at least I'll know what he's up to.'

'Where's Toby, er, I mean Windstalker?' Sarah asked as a dwarf assigned as their chauffeur handed them into the carriage. 'I thought he was going to pull the carriage.'

'He's out roaming again.'

'I have this terrible feeling that he really does want to be a horse,' Sarah said as she settled herself on the seat cushions, taking care to arrange her skirts so they wouldn't wrinkle.

'He's certainly more agreeable as one.'

As the carriage got closer and closer to the High King's castle, Sarah felt herself growing more and more anxious. This was it. She had two weeks to get Jareth to propose. With so many other women throwing themselves at him, would he even notice her? And if he did notice her, would he fall in love with her?

She really wasn't suited for the role of femme fatale. Sure, she was an actress, but she was more a Doris Day than a Marlene Dietrich. Oh, you're being silly, she told herself. It's not as if you've never met the man. You've met him, fallen in love with him and was going to marry him. How hard could it be to repeat the process?

The carriage rolled to a halt in front of the castle. It was blazing with light and music could be heard as well as laughter. The door opened and the steps were lowered by a stout goblin in livery. Sarah remained seated, gazing out with wide, terrified eyes.

'Go on,' Linda urged.

'Oh, Mom,' she whispered, 'what if he doesn't like me?'

'I think it'll be more of a question of whether you'll like him.'

Sarah looked at her, frowning. 'What do you mean?'

'If he's anything like his brother, you're going to detest him.' Linda let out a mirthless laugh. 'You've got a rough road ahead of you, honey. Not only do you have to get him to fall in love with you, but you've got to fall in love with him.'

'But I already love him.'

'Jareth, yes, this guy,' Linda shrugged, 'who knows? Now, come on, it's performance time. Make it a good one, honey.'

**SCENE CHANGE**

Jareth sat in his throne on the raised dais of the ballroom, utterly bored. He had never cared much for balls, and this one was practically unpleasant since he was supposed to be the main attraction. When Dart had told him that they'd be holding a castle party in order to find him a bride, he had laughed. The lengths his brother would go to get him leg-shackled were hilarious. That humor had quickly faded, however, when he found himself standing at Dart's side, having lady after lady paraded under his nose.

'What about that one?' Dart had said, poking him in the ribs. 'She's got splendid hocks and withers.'

'If I were interested in hocks and withers,' Jareth had said dryly, 'I'd find better ones in the stable.'

'There's a sturdy girl,' Dart had noted. 'She'd provide us with half a dozen heirs to choose from.'

'Then you marry her,' Jareth had retorted, turning away to stalk off into the crowd.

If truth be told, he wanted nothing to do with an arranged marriage, and he was surprised that Dart wanted to force him down the same path that their father had forced him. Aida had come from an excellent family. She was pretty and accomplished, but she had had this dreadful habit of shrinking away every time Dart came into the room. She had had no spirit, and it had always puzzled Jareth how Dart had ever managed to bed the chit. Perhaps he hadn't, and that's why an heir hadn't been secured before her death.

A somewhat suspicious death, Jareth remembered. They didn't use arrows to hunt jackalope so how did an arrow find its way to Aida's heart that day? It had always been a mystery to him, but one that he hadn't pursued, mostly because he had suspected Dart of being involved in some way. He had shown no emotion when they'd buried the girl. On the contrary, he'd shown a great deal of relief. Still, Jareth mused, Dart had never been one to display emotion unless it was sarcasm or anger.

And now it was his turn…or so that's what Dart had told him. But all the ladies presented to him that evening had left him cold. Oh, there were a few that were pretty and a few he wouldn't mind bedding, if he'd been tempted to make the effort, which he wasn't, but none had stood out. None had been worth his effort. So he had planted himself on his throne and watched the clock ticked away…and it was ticking at a drearily slow pace.

He was contemplating the shine on the toe of his boot and wondering if he could use a little magic to move the time forward a bit when the goblin stationed at the double doors of the ballroom bellowed out 'Lady Sarah of the Aboveground'.

Jareth's attention was immediately captured. The Aboveground? He'd read something about an Aboveground in his father's library. It had puzzled and excited him. Any chit from such a place was worth at least a look. He glanced up, expecting to see another bog-faced girl, but the woman standing just inside the doors wasn't bog-faced at all. She was…_magnificent._ Jareth felt his loins tighten as his eyes ran over her from head to foot.

She was dressed in a gown of emerald green overlaid with some gauze-like material that was studded with pearls. Her dark hair was drawn up to reveal a long, slender neck. One fat curl lay across her shoulder, just barely touching a creamy collarbone. Now, this, he decided, swinging his leg off the armrest and sitting up, was worth his effort. She was the most captivating woman in the ballroom, _and_ she came from the most captivating of places, the Aboveground.

He stood and descended the steps. The crowd parted for him, and he strode with single-minded purpose until he was standing in front of…Lady Sarah, was it? He extended a gloved hand.

'Dance with me,' he ordered.

She stared at him. 'I beg your pardon?'

Was the girl daft? Why was she staring at him in that odd fashion as though she couldn't believe her ears?

'I said dance with me.'

Before she could answer, he slid an arm around her waist, pulling her up against him. The intoxicating smell of her filled his nose. Gardenia, he wondered. No, something spicier, more exotic. She squirmed uncomfortably, shoving against him until he allowed a little space between them. So, she was shy. All the better, he decided as he swung her onto the dance floor. He liked a challenge.

'My name is Jareth,' he told her.

'Yes, I know.'

'Why haven't I met you before?'

'I…I live far away,' she replied before looking up at him with eyes as green as her dress. 'Must you hold me so close?'

'Don't you like it?'

'Not particularly. It's uncomfortable.'

He ignored her protest. 'You're a beautiful woman.'

'Do you hold all beautiful women this closely?'

'Only the ones I intend to bed.'

'What did you say?'

There is was again, that look of incredulity. Rather than put him off it made him want her even more.

'You heard me,' he said before placing his mouth against her ear and murmuring, 'My bedchamber is on the second floor, fourth door on the left. Come at midnight. I'll be waiting for you.'

_Across the ballroom…_

'Well, that was encouraging,' Linda noted as the crowd closed around the dancing couple, obscuring them from view.

'Yes, very encouraging,' Dart agreed, taking a sip from his wineglass. He let his eyes wander down the length of the woman's midnight blue dress and back up again, coming to rest on her creamy white neck. Splendid hocks and withers, he mused with grudging admiration. If only something could be done about that mouth of hers. 'He didn't show nearly as much interest with any of the other young ladies presented to him.'

'Are you conceding the first round to Sarah?'

'Oh, no,' Dart said with a laugh, 'I concede nothing. The night is still young, and I know my brother.'

'What's that supposed to mean?'

Suddenly there was a commotion and over the music Linda clearly heard Sarah's voice shouting _'HOW DARE YOU?'_ followed by a loud smacking sound. As Linda watched, Sarah went running out of the ballroom. Jareth stood staring after her, a hand to his cheek.

'See, wench,' Dart's hated voice said in her ear, 'what did I tell you? I would say the first round goes to me, and I didn't even have to cheat or use magic.'

Fury burned within Linda at his arrogant mocking. _And he had called her wench again!_

She spun on her heel to face him, eyes spitting green fire at him. 'I warned you that you'd regret it, if you called me that name again.'

Raising a hand, she landed it square against his cheek, and then picking up her skirts, she followed Sarah out of the room.

She didn't find her daughter crying as she had expected. Instead she found her striding back and forth in the courtyard, waving her hands wildly and talking to herself as the dwarf, a confused look on his homely face, dutifully held the carriage door open.

'Sarah,' she said, hurrying up to her, 'what was that all about? Everything seemed to be going so well. He immediately picked you out of the crowd.'

'Yeah,' Sarah retorted, 'to proposition.'

'What?'

'You heard me, 'Sarah yelled,' he propositioned me. He asked me to come to his bedchamber at midnight. The…the…' she sputtered to a stop and then spit out, 'sheer audacity of the man is mind-boggling! He's lucky that all I did was slap his face. I wanted to knee him right between the…'

'Well,' Linda interrupted, 'at least he's attracted to you. That's a good sign. You know, it's not unusual for love to start out as a feeling of lust...'

'Mom,' this time it was Sarah's turn to interrupt, 'as far as he's concerned, we've only just met, and he already inviting me to his bed? What kind of morals do these Goblin Kings have?'

'They're barbarians,' Linda answered, 'and that's what barbarians do.'

'Jareth didn't do that, not even when he was the Goblin King.'

'He was in love, and love has a civilizing affect.'

Sarah began to move again. Back and forth like a metronome, Linda thought, watching her daughter stomp out her anger in the High King's courtyard. 'I can't believe I fell in love with that man.'

'He said that you wouldn't like him.'

'Yeah, I know,' Sarah muttered, 'but how many other women has he propositioned since this wager began? If I'm not sharing his bed tonight, who will be?'

Linda came over and put an arm around her shoulders. 'I know it's tough, honey, but you've got to be strong. He's counting on you. You're the only one who knows his potential. You're the only one that can make him into the man he was before his horrid brother tampered with his mind. You're not going to let Dart win, are you?'

Sarah's chin went up. 'Never!'

'Good girl,' Linda cheered. 'Shall we go back inside and dance the night away as though nothing's happened?'

'No,' Sarah said, shaking her head, 'I've had enough for one night. Besides, I've made a spectacle of myself. Maybe if I just go up to my room, they will have forgotten about it by tomorrow.' She glanced at the dwarf who still stood at attention. 'We won't need the carriage, Sorwin. We'll be staying with the other guests at the castle.'

But as soon as Sarah stepped into the large marble tiled entrance way, a young man detached himself from the shadows and came toward her. He was tall and dark with a closely-cropped beard.

'Lady Sarah?' He asked.

'Yes?'

'I was waiting here hoping you'd come back,' he told her. 'I wanted to be the first to ask.'

'Ask what?'

'If you'd do me the honor of dancing the next dance with me.'

'I wasn't intending to go back to the ball,' she said with an apologetic smile. 'Perhaps another time.'

'Oh, but you must,' he cried, his voice stopping her as she moved toward the stairs leading up to the guest rooms. 'All the gentlemen are most eager to dance with you.'

She looked at him, puzzled. 'Why?'

'I think that should be obvious,' he said, flashing a toothy grin. 'You slapped the Goblin King. The only thing better would have been if you'd managed to break that arrogant nose of his. If truth be told, the gentlemen of this land have dreamed of doing something similar for decades. He and his brother are dreadful bullies.'

Sarah turned and looked at Linda. 'What do you think? Should I?'

'Go ahead,' Linda urged. 'Show him how a gentleman ought to act if he wants a lady to dance with him.'

The young man extended his hand, and Sarah took it.

'My name is Lord Rhys,' he told her as he led her back into the ballroom.

**SCENE CHANGE**

The ballroom, which had blazed with light and laughter only an hour before sat dark and empty. All had departed to their assigned chambers for the night. Jareth, however, continued to sit on his throne, one leg tossed over an armrest, the crop tapping out a sharp staccato rhythm against one boot. His thoughts were as dark and turbulent as the bog after midnight.

How dare she slap his face! Nobody slapped the face of a Goblin King, nobody who valued their life, that is. If he had not been a generous man, she would be in the Bog of Eternal Stench right now, dangling from those very pretty little thumbs. And for what, he asked himself. For inviting her to his bedchamber? What was slap-worthy in that? He wanted her. Why shouldn't he suggest such a thing?

Any of the other young women present would have been glad to receive such an invitation, he assured himself. Lady Esther, for one, had made it quite clear during the course of the evening that she would be more than willing to warm his sheets. But, damn it, he hadn't wanted Lady Esther with her gold ringlets and overly pink cheeks. He had wanted a dark beauty with snapping green eyes and a slap that would stun an ogre.

He rubbed his cheek, remembering the sting. A sensible man would steer clear of such a bog-cat, but obviously he wasn't a sensible man because her rejection of him only made him want her more. It had been infuriating to watch her dance with gentleman after gentleman upon her return to the ballroom. That popinjay, Rhys, had made a particular pest of himself. To have to watch such behavior at a ball where _he_ was supposed to be the main attraction was intolerable. _He_ was the one to be vied for, not _her_.

A footstep drew his attention. Dart was walking across the ballroom.

'Still up, little brother?'

'Obviously,' came the sarcastic response.

'It's nearly three in the morning,' Dart noted, lowering himself into the other throne. 'You ought to be in bed. We have goblin chess and archery scheduled tomorrow afternoon. You'll need to be fresh and well rested, looking your best.'

'If they want to marry me, then they'd better get used to seeing me at my worse.'

'I think they already have.'

'What's that supposed to mean?'

'You weren't exactly the life of the party tonight, were you?'

'You said to be there. You didn't say I had to enjoy it.'

There was a long silence in which Jareth's tapping crop was the only sound, and then Dart said with forced cheerfulness. 'I must say that the Goblin Realm has out done itself this year in pretty females. Lady Esther seemed to take a particular interest in you.'

'Lady Esther would take an interest in anyone with a kingdom.'

Dart sighed in acknowledgement of a true statement. 'Her mother was the same way. She was not happy when father chose Aida instead of her.'

The crop stopped tapping as Jareth turned in his chair to look at his brother. 'I didn't know the Dowager Gwen was a candidate.'

'It's not something I care to remember. She would have certainly warmed my bed better, but I suspect I would have discovered poison in my beer at some point.'

'Or an arrow in the heart?'

Dart chose not to comment. 'So if Lady Esther is out, who's the lucky girl?'

The crop began tapping again. 'I found none of them particularly appealing except for…'

'The one who slapped you,' Dart finished.

There was no pleasure in his voice. In fact, he sounded annoyed, and that puzzled Jareth. The purpose of this castle party was to find him a bride, wasn't it? If that were true, then why should Dart care which young woman was chosen? Not that he had any intention of choosing Lady Sarah of the Aboveground, Jareth quickly assured himself. He had no intention of choosing _anyone_.

'You don't like her?'

'It's not a matter of liking,' Dart replied. 'She doesn't belong here. Her kind is different than ours.'

'How so?'

'You invited her to your bed this evening, didn't you?'

'Yes,' the answer was abrupt.

'And that's why she slapped you. Her kind doesn't respond well to aggression, and what is a Goblin King without aggression? He's a milksop, a popinjay, a creature to be scorned and ridiculed. We must be aggressive if we are to rule.'

'For a woman who doesn't respond well to aggression,' Jareth noted dryly, a gloved hand going to his cheek, 'she has a pretty aggressive way of showing her displeasure.'

'She learned it from her mother,' Dart muttered, touching his own cheek.

Jareth turned in his chair again, his expression incredulous. 'You asked her to your bed?'

'Certainly not,' Dart retorted as though such a thing had never occurred to him when in truth it had on more than one occasion. 'I merely called her wench, and she went mad. Bloody woman damn near loosened a tooth.'

'They are, indeed, a strange kind,' Jareth murmured more to himself than his brother.

'And best avoided,' Dart declared, getting to his feet. 'It's late. I'm going up to my bedchamber. You'd best go too.'

'I'll be up shortly.'

Dart stared at him for a few more moments, his displeasure almost palpable, and then turned on his heel and stalked out of the room. Jareth barely heard him leave. His mind was on other things.

The soft gold and pink colors of dawn were just breaking through the tall, diamond-paned windows of the ballroom when Jareth finally uncurled himself and made his way up to his room.


	5. Chapter 5 - May the Best Cheater Win

**CHAPTER FIVE**

_May the Best Cheater Win_

'Knight to bishop three.'

Sarah watched as the goblins on the giant chess board obeyed the speaker's command, scurrying and tumbling over each other to reach the appropriate spot before chestnuts rained down on them. Apparently pelting a slow goblin was part of the fun. Otherwise, why would buckets of chestnuts be provided at each chair and table? Sarah turned away in disgust as those gathered laughed heartily when Lady Esther managed to knock the bishop's hat off one poor creature. But to be fair, she had to admit that the goblins didn't seem to mind the tiny missiles. They were greedily eating the nuts as quickly as they were launched.

The brutality and cruelty of the Underground appalled her. Oh, she'd run into some cruel behavior in the labyrinth, those tormentors of Ludo for example, but she had never realized how widespread it was, especially among the so-called 'lords and ladies' of the Realm. Still, she thought as she quickly put distance between herself and the participants, what could one expected when their rulers were just as cruel and brutal?

It pained her to know that Jareth was one of those rulers. Fortunately, he was not a part of the chess game, a great disappointment to the ladies gathered. She had not seen him since last night, and she was sorry to say that she was glad he was elsewhere. Otherwise, she'd be forced to pursue, and it was difficult to pursue a man she didn't like. Dart, the beast, had chosen his wager wisely. He must have known that Sarah would find it hard to love a Goblin King in the rough.

Her pace slowed and then stopped when she wandered into an open area that had been set up for archery. There were tables holding bows and arrows and brightly colored bulls-eyes on hay bales in the distance. Her fingers touched a bow, following its smooth, curved line. She hadn't shot a bow since she was a kid in gym class. Picking it up, she selected an arrow, strung it and was disappointed when it only travelled a few feet before falling to the ground. Undaunted, she picked up another arrow.

'You're not doing it right,' a voice said behind her.

She glanced over her shoulder. Jareth, dressed completely in black, was leaning casually against the castle's wall, one booted foot resting against the stones, arms crossed as though he'd been standing there for some time.

'I'm not surprised,' she replied. 'I haven't shot an arrow since I was ten.'

'Would you like me to show you how to do it properly?'

He sounded much less arrogant today so she decided to accept his offer. Besides, she was supposed to be pursuing him.

'Ok.'

'First, you'll need a glove,' he said, taking her right hand in his.

Her fingers trembled at the contact. No matter how confused her mind was as to whether or not she even liked him, her body still recognized him. He must have felt the slight tremor for he glanced up, his eyes questioning as he pulled the archery glove over her hand, securing it around her wrist.

She had thought he'd demonstrate the proper way to shoot an arrow himself, but instead he came up behind her, placing his arms around her as he showed her how to set the arrow, pull the string and release. She tried to ignore the way her body was singing at his touch. Whether he felt anything at their closeness, she didn't know. His expression was all business as he took her through the steps over and over again.

There were several arrows littering the ground before he finally spoke. 'What did I do wrong last night?'

'What?'

'Why did you slap me?'

She lowered the bow, turning to look at him. 'You don't know?'

'I was informed that my ways are different than yours. When I meet a woman I want, I feel no reluctance in telling her so, but apparently my honesty offended you. So I'm curious. Does your kind not value honesty?'

Honesty? Is that what he called his behavior last night? Such a thought had never occurred to her. In his eyes, he was just being honest, expressing himself without any of the dating games common in her world. She felt some of the anger she'd been harboring drain away.

'It wasn't a matter of honesty,' she told him, trying to explain in terms he would understand. 'Where I come from, there's usually a feeling of affection between a man and a woman before they…'

'Bed each other,' he provided when she hesitated.

'Er, yes.'

He seemed to consider this for a long moment. He looked like a scientist mulling over a difficult hypothesis. Finally he said. 'By affection, you're referring to love.'

'Yes. Have you heard of it?'

'I've read about it.'

'Read about it?' She echoed. 'Haven't you experienced it?'

'No.'

'You have a brother so you must have had parents. Didn't you feel love for them?"

His mouth kicked up in one of his dry smiles. 'I would use neither the word love nor affection to describe my relationship with my parents. Respect, fear, yes, but love, no.'

She was trying to digest what he'd just told her when he spoke again, his voice curious. 'Tell me about this Aboveground of yours. What is it like?'

'It's difficult to explain,' she said. 'It's such a large place.'

'Then take me there so I can see for myself.'

'I can't,' she told him. 'A barrier has been placed between our worlds.'

His eyes narrowed. 'Then how did you get here? How did you receive an invitation to this party?'

Sarah winced inwardly. He was quick, very quick. His behavior might be throw back to the dark ages, but his mind was as sharp and clearly very inquisitive. She'd told him too much. How in the world was she going to explain her presence without revealing the wager behind it? She picked up another arrow and strung it, stalling for time.

Apparently the answer wasn't important to him for he didn't press her. Instead he said, his voice lowering, taking on an urgent tone. 'If you can't take me to the Aboveground, then show me.'

'I don't understand.'

'Come with me.'

He turned and strode off in the direction of a hedge of boxwoods. He obviously expected her to follow, and despite her reservations, curiosity won out. She dropped the bow and arrow and hurried after him just as he disappeared around a corner. By the time she got there, he was nowhere in sight. She was walking along the hedges, wondering where the devil he could have gone, when a hand reached out, grasping her arm. She was unceremoniously hauled into an opening in the boxwood. She would have screamed if Jareth hadn't placed a gloved hand over her mouth.

'In here,' he ordered, 'where no one can see.'

He led her down leafy pathways until they came to a shady alcove. For a moment, she thought maybe it was all a scheme of his to proposition her again, but upon satisfying himself that they were alone, he waved his hand and a crystal appeared.

'Take it,' he told her. 'Hold it between your fingers, close your eyes and think about the place where you come from. I will see what you see in the crystal.'

She closed her eyes as directed and let her mind flow back to the Aboveground. At first, she started with familiar landmarks, cities and towns she'd visited, but then her mind turned to her own life, and she saw her dad's house, her college dorm and then the diner and the apartment where she and Toby had lived. Finally images of Jareth's penthouse appeared along with the theater and the house they'd been viewing just before he'd been taken away.

'Enough,' he commanded.

She opened her eyes and found him regarding her with a dark expression.

'Who was the man with the pale hair?'

'You saw a man?' She had tried not to think about him.

'I could not see his features. His image was dim as though you were deliberately concealing it from me.' His tone was accusing. 'Is he important to you?'

'He was,' she admitted.

'Then where is he?' Jareth demanded. 'Why would such a man let you come here alone? _I_ would not allow such a thing.'

'He had no choice.'

'Do you love him?'

'Very much.'

She saw him scowl. 'I do not understand any of this. If you love him, why are you here seeking to become my bride?' His hand shot out. His fingers dug into her arm as he pulled her toward him, his eyes boring into hers as if he'd excavate from her mind the information he wanted to know. 'I command you to tell me!'

'Jareth! Jareth, where are you?'

It was Lady Esther's voice. His fingers tightened briefly as though unwilling to release his prey, but then they were gone, and he was moving away from her. She glared at him, rubbing her arm. He didn't even have the grace to be ashamed of himself. On the contrary, he was scowling just as fiercely as she was glaring.

It was upon this scene that Lady Esther finally stumbled. Her eyes went from Jareth to Sarah and back again. Her pretty mouth became ugly.

'Am I interrupting something?'

Jareth ignored her question. 'What do you want?'

'Your brother sent me to find you. He's beginning the archery competition.'

'Why does he need me there?'

'Because you're the prize. The winner of the competition receives a private dinner with you.'

Sarah hadn't thought his scowl could become any blacker, but it did. He obviously didn't like being the 'prize', and she didn't blame him. Nothing could be more demeaning, especially to a man of such pride. She was expecting him to unleash upon Lady Easter's gold ringlets a rant of epic portions, but to her amazement, he didn't. Instead, he smiled, extending an arm to Esther, which the girl wasted no time latching on to.

'And are you very good at archery,' he asked her in almost a playful manner.

'I never miss,' she assured him, dimples flashing.

They began walking away, but then he stopped, looking back at Sarah. 'Aren't you joining the competition, Lady Sarah?'

'No,' she replied, 'I'm not very good at it.'

'Nonsense,' he declared, 'a student of mine can't help but do well.'

He extended his other arm, and she reluctantly took it.

**SCENE CHANGE**

She hadn't lied. That was certain. Her archery skills were nearly non-existent. In fact, she was on the very of losing in the first round. If something wasn't done soon, she was never going to win. And she _must_ win, Jareth decided as he stood on the sidelines with the other guests. There was no other lady present that sharing dinner with wouldn't be an absolute torment and bore, and besides, he thought, scowling, there was unfinished business between them. She had not explained why she was here contending to be his bride when she loved another man.

What kind of milksop allowed a woman like that to get away, to go to a far-off land to court a Goblin King? His fingers curled into fists as he pictured her in the arms of this pale-haired stranger. He bet she hadn't slapped _his_ face.

With effort, he forced himself to relax. He would deal with the reason why she was here later. Right now, there was a more pressing matters at hand, and he was going to do exactly what Dart had taught him to do. He was going to cheat like the bog.

He watched as Sarah strung another arrow, aimed at the target and released. With the barest wave on his hand, the arrow sailed across the lawn and lodged itself in the blue ring. No need to raise suspicions, he decided, pleased with himself. The blue ring was enough to beat her current competitor.

**SCENE CHANGE**

Sarah stared at the arrow, astonished. How did that happen? All her other attempts had fallen well short of the target. She watched as her opponent took her turn. The arrow landed in the black ring as it had three times before. Stepping up to the line once again, Sarah strung another arrow and let it fly. It too landed in the blue ring…as did the rest of her shots, earning her the right to move on.

By the time she'd defeated five more opponents, the arrow getting closer and closer to the bulls-eye, she was convinced that something strange was going on. Only magic could accomplish such a feat, and according to Dart, only he and Jareth had such powers. She couldn't imagine Dart wanting her to win so her eyes went to Jareth, lounging in a chair, looking completely bored. Was he cheating for her? Rather than warm her heart, it made her hopping mad. She didn't want _anyone_ cheating for her. Either she'd do it herself, fair and square, or not at all.

She said as much to Linda when a short intermission was called before the final match between herself and Lady Esther.

'He's cheating,' she hissed as Linda joined her.

Before then she'd been glued to Dart's side. She called in monitoring, but Sarah was beginning to wonder. She suspected that her mother enjoyed sparring with 'the old goat'. There was a twinkle in her eyes that hadn't been there before.

'I'm sure he's not,' Linda said. 'I've been keeping a close eye on him. Of course,' she said with a sniff, 'it hasn't been easy with that cow Dowager Gwen following him around like Mary's little lamb. I'm convinced she's hoping for a double wedding.'

'Not Dart,' Sarah corrected. 'Jareth. I'm terrible at archery, but here I am in the final match. I couldn't do that without magic.'

Linda brightened. 'Well, that's a good sign, isn't it? He prefers your company at dinner to all the other ladies here.'

'He wants dinner with me so he can pick my mind some more,' Sarah muttered, looking at Linda with worried eyes. 'Mom, he's getting suspicious. He wants to know why I'm here when I'm in love with another man.'

'Another man?'

'Himself.' When Linda stared at her as though she'd just escape the funny farm, Sarah elaborated. 'He saw himself in the crystal, but he doesn't know it's him because he couldn't see the features very well. All he saw was pale hair.'

'What crystal?'

'He wanted to see the Aboveground. I guess it must be a fascination of his or something. He was very curious about it. So he had me hold a crystal and imagine it for him. That's when he saw the pale-haired man and started questioning me about him.' She rubbed her arm. 'He was an absolute brute. He _commanded_ that I tell him why I was attempting to become his bride when I loved someone else. If Esther hadn't interrupted, I don't know what I would have done.'

'Slapped him again, no doubt.'

'I get the feeling that you can only slap a Goblin King once and get away with it.'

'Then I guess you're going to have to lie,' Linda said. 'Tell him the pale-haired man died or something. In a way he did, you know. The kinder, more civilized Jareth has died and been replaced his evil twin.'

'You make them sound like Jekyll and Hyde.'

'That pretty much describes it, don't you think?' When Sarah didn't reply, she added. 'Ah, come on, honey, cheer up. It hasn't even been 24 hours yet, and he's already behaving like the old Jareth in the fact that's he's cheating for you. You don't have to do anything but let him.' She waved a hand at those gathered on the lawn. 'Do you think any of these other characters wouldn't cheat if they thought they could get away with it? You bet they would. So get in there and win.'

Sarah picked up her bow. 'Oh, I'll win. He'll make sure of it.'

However, it was not the sure thing that Sarah had thought when she left her mother and joined Esther and the dwarf who was officiating.

Esther went first, scoring a hit inside the red center. Sarah stepped up to the line and drew her bow. Just as she released the string, a sharp, stinging pain exploded in her thigh, and the arrow dropped to the ground, never even getting into the air. The same thing happened on her next shot, a stinging pain in her calf this time.

While Esther was taking her third shot, Sarah glanced at the ground, running her boot along the grass. Her toe uncovered two chestnuts like those used in the chess game. She looked up, her eyes searching the surrounding shrubberies. It appeared that someone other than Jareth had decided to try their hand at cheating that afternoon.

The dwarf called her to the line. Esther had amazingly missed the target completely, and she was not happy about it. If fact, she was protesting most strongly, but the dwarf ignored her, saying it was not unusual for a gust of wind to misdirect an arrow. Sarah's eyes went to Jareth. He was smirking. So, she thought, stringing her bow, may the best cheater win.

**SCENE CHANGE**

Toby trotted up to the High King's castle. He'd been out roaming the hillsides all night and had missed Sarah's big debut. He hoped she would not be too upset. It's not like he could help it, he assured himself. Something about being a horse just made him want to feel the wind in his ears. He marveled at his speed and wished he'd been able to run like this in gym class back home. Jimmy Grant would _not_ have beaten him out of that blue ribbon in the 100 yard dash.

There was something else about being a horse that made him different. He no longer hated Jareth. He was actually grateful to him for rescuing him from that horrible goblin body that made him fat and stupid and giving him these wonderful hooves that took him places that he could have never gone as a boy. He had actually climbed to a top of a mountain last night and looked down on the Underground as though he were a king. And maybe he was, he thought with a little kick of his back hooves. King of the horses!

He stopped, his ears twitching as he heard noise. Following it, he arrived just in time to see a small figure concealed behind a line of low shrubberies raise a slingshot and take aim.

'Hey,' he yelled, trotting forward, 'what do think you're doing?'

The figure spun around. It was girl, Toby realized. She was dressed as a boy in breeches and a jacket. Her brown hair was braided and wrapped around her ears like Princess Leia's had done in the first Star Wars. She stared at him with wide eyes, her hand behind her back as she sought to hide the slingshot.

'Did you say that?' She finally asked.

'Sure, I did.'

'But horses can't talk.'

'I can,' Toby said proudly. 'I'm a _talking_ horse.'

'I've never met a talking horse before,' she said, her voice sounding suitably impressed.

Toby shook his mane, showing off its pale silkiness before saying, 'What were you doing with that slingshot?"

'My sister told me to do it, honest,' the girl exclaimed. 'I didn't want to make the lady in the blue dress miss, but she threatened me. She said she'd give me a potion to turn me into a goblin. Mama and Esther are very good with potions and poisons.'

Nothing could have softened Toby's heart more than hearing about some other kid's goblin woes, but his heart quickly hardened again when he looked over the hedge and saw who the lady in blue was. It was Sarah, and he was determined to make up for wishing Jareth's away. He was not going to let this girl get away until he found who she was and why she was cheating.

'Who's your sister?'

'Lady Esther.' The girl sighed, kicking the grass with the toe of her boot. 'But we don't look anything alike. She's so pretty, and I'm ugly. She says the faeries took her real sister and left me in her place. She's calls me a change…a changeling.'

'Why did she force you to cheat?'

'Because she wants to win the dinner with the Goblin King. She's determined to marry him.'

That sounded truthful enough.

'What's your name?'

'My name is Drusilla,' she told him, 'but everyone calls me Toad.'

Geez and he thought he had it bad with Jareth hanging around making him clean his room and do his homework. Yeah, Jareth had called him a mouthy bugger and a brat, but that part had been true. There was no reason to call this girl Toad except for pure meanness. To tell the truth, Toby didn't think she was ugly at all. He liked her brown hair. It reminded him of milk chocolate.

'I'll call you Dru,' he declared.

She smiled, showing even white teeth. 'What's your name?'

He lifted his nose and looked down at her with what he hoped was a noble horse look. 'Windstalker.' When she didn't look overly impressed, he added. 'But you can call me Toby.'

'That's a funny name for a horse.'

'I wasn't always a horse.'

'You weren't?' Her eyes were big and round again.

'Nope. I was a boy until the High King turned me into a goblin. But then Jareth turned me into a horse, and being a horse is so cool.'

'You know the Goblin King?'

'Sure, he was going to marry my sister until I wished him away.'

'Who's your sister?'

'The woman in the blue dress.'

It never occurred to Toby that he was telling his new friend too much information. Perhaps it was his noble horse mind, but it never occurred to him that such information might reach less noble ears someday.

'I hope she wins,' Dru declared with a rebellious lift of her chin. 'I don't like cheating for my sister.'

'Hey,' Toby said, 'do you want to see how fast I can run?'

'I'd love to!'

**SCENE CHANGE**

Dart scowled as the dwarf announced Sarah as winner. Something strange had just occurred, and he had a good idea who was responsible. He'd seen the human's skill in the first round. She'd been on the verge of losing and then suddenly her arrow was hitting the target, and it continued to hit the target until the last match began. Two times she had flinched upon releasing the arrow. The other girl should have beat her easily, but suddenly Lady Esther couldn't hit the broad side of a goblin's rump. Esther had faltered just long enough for Sarah to make up the deficit and win.

'I demand a rematch,' Dowager Gwen was shrieking at his side. 'Esther never misses. _Someone_ was obviously cheating.'

'Are you suggesting that my daughter was?' Linda demanded.

'How else could she have won?'

'Then how did she do it?' Linda shot back. 'It's a little difficult to cheat at archery, don't you think?'

'Magic,' Gwen retorted. 'She used magic. Dart, as High King and master of these festivities, I demand that you disqualify her for the use of contraband items.'

But Dart was gone. He'd slipped away as soon as the argument had begun. He had no desire to be in the middle of two women defending their daughters. He agreed with Dowager Gwen that somebody had been cheating, but he knew enough to know it wasn't the human. Gwen was right. I had been magic but not Sarah Williams' magic.

He found Jareth lounging in a chair, one leg thrown over the armrest. He didn't waste time with niceties. He'd come to find out if his suspicions were correct.

'You helped that chit win, didn't you?'

Jareth glanced up at him. 'What if I did?'

'You'll be disqualified.'

'As what? The prize? Believe, me, brother, I'm more than willing to take my punishment.'

Dart ignored him. 'Did you help her to spite me for making you the prize or because you actually prefer the girl over the others?'

'Both.'

The answer was insolent, grating across Dart's barely restrained rage.

'I will not tolerate any more interference,' he said, his voice dangerously quiet. 'If the ladies aren't allowed to use their potions, then you're not allowed to use your magic. If you continue to defy me, I will limit your powers to twirling crystals. The competition must be fair to all ladies involved.'

'Then you'd better have a talk with Lady Esther.' Jareth tossed a couple chestnuts at him. 'I found these where Lady Sarah was standing. I suspect someone was trying to turn the competition in their favor by taking a few pings at her.'

Dart's hand closed around the chestnuts, his anger boiling. Apparently the only one not cheating that afternoon had been him, and it was galling to know that he'd been beaten at his own game. No one was allowed to cheat except the High King, damn it!

He was tempted to declare the competition null and void and select a dinner companion of his choosing for his brother that evening, but even a tyrant like him didn't want to look dishonorable in front of his guests. The dinner would proceed as planned, but the next time someone cheated, he would not be as lenient. They would suffer the full consequences.

Turning on his heel, he stalked off into the crowd.


	6. Chapter 6 - When Wanting Isn't Enough

**CHAPTER SIX**

_When Wanting Isn't Enough_

Sarah walked across the marble hall to the dining room with much reluctance. She was not looking forward to her dinner alone with the Goblin King. Under normal circumstances, she would have relish private time with Jareth but not tonight. He had arranged this dinner for a reason, and she was very much afraid that she knew what he had in mind…and it wasn't a proposition. He wanted to take up where they'd left off in the alcove. He wanted answers, answers she could not give him.

However, when she reached the dining room, a goblin in livery was waiting for her. He leered at her in a most unpleasant way. If she hadn't been accustomed to the seedy appearance of goblins, she might have refused his next request.

'Follow me,' he instructed.

She followed the little hook nosed creature back across the marble hall and then down a shadowed corridor lit by firepots. He stopped at a pair of double doors, which he pushed open. The smell of old books and leather assailed her nose. He'd taken her to the library.

'Why have you brought me here?' She asked him.

He tittered and then scurried away.

She stepped inside and then stood for a long moment, looking around. There were books lining the walls from floor to ceiling, old books bound with leather and cloth, no modern paperbacks here. There was even a second floor with stairs leading up to it. At one end was a huge fireplace surrounded by red brocade chairs, and above the mantel was an enormous portrait of a man. Curious, she moved toward it.

Fierce eyes stared down at her as she stood gazing upward. It wasn't Dart, she decided, but it was certainly a relation. Their father perhaps. If so, she could certainly understand why Jareth had not received much love from his parents. This man was truly something to be feared and respected.

'I see you've found father,' Jareth's voice came from somewhere above her.

She glanced to the side. He was leaning against the second floor railing, a book in his gloved hand. As she watched, he walked to the staircase and slowly descended.

'What do you think of him?' He asked, joining her.

'He looks absolutely ferocious.'

Jareth laughed. 'He was, and he'd be pleased to hear you say so. Image was everything with father.'

'I thought we were having dinner.'

'We are,' he agreed, 'but I thought you'd like to see my favorite place in the castle.' A pale eyebrow went up. 'After all, you want to be my wife, don't you? A wife should know such things.'

Sarah wanted to say, yes, she wanted very much to be his wife but decided the best approach was to remain silent on the subject. He seemed attracted to women that didn't hang on his every word, that didn't flatter him. Why else would he be here with her rather than Lady Esther or one of the other ladies vying for his attention. But, of course, it made sense. He was a man who liked a challenge. He always had been.

'An odd choice for a Goblin King,' she noted.

'You're right,' he told her. 'My father and brother spent as little time as possible here. I, on the other hand, came here often. I enjoyed the peace and quiet and it was the one place you didn't find goblins.'

'And what of your mother,' she asked. 'Is there a portrait of her as well?'

'I wouldn't know,' he replied, placing the book he was carrying on a table. 'She faded when I was born. If there was a portrait, it was removed before I was old enough to remember it.'

How sad, Sarah thought, her heart going out to him. He had never spoken of father or mother, and this was all new information to her. No wonder he and his brother were so brutal. They'd had no mother to soften them. And perhaps his father was so ferocious because he had missed his dead wife. Had he raised his boys to disdain love because of the pain it had caused him?

'It must have been difficult for your father raising two boys on his own.'

'He had the goblins to help, and Dart was a man by then.' He leafed through the book before adding almost as an afterthought. 'I'm told she was quite beautiful and came from across the Great Sea.'

'I wish there was a picture of her.'

He glanced at her. 'Why? She has no bearing on your life.'

She had a lot of bearing Sarah wanted to say. She's the mother of the man I love. But she couldn't say that, not yet, so she settled for something less revealing.

'Curiosity, I guess.'

'Curiosity,' he mused. 'Funny thing about curiosity. It tends to lead us down unsuspecting paths. For instance, this book has some fascinating information on the Aboveground. It says it's a place inhabited by humans. Therefore, I can only conclude that you are human.' When she didn't reply, he added. 'And humans are forbidden in the Underground so I'm confused, Lady Sarah. How did you ever convince my brother to invite you to this party?'

'I think it's best that you ask you brother that questions,' she told him. 'He issued the invitation. I merely accepted.'

He studied her for a long moment, his expression brooding, before saying. 'Something very strange is going on, and I want to know what it is. You will tell me, Sarah.'

'I came here for dinner,' she replied. 'So far, you've not held up your end of the deal. I shall have to talk to you brother about the quality of his prizes.'

She could tell from his face, in the way he held his body that he wanted to press her for an answer. Instead, as he had in the alcove, he did the unexpected; he controlled himself.

'Very well. Where do you want to go?'

'Go?'

'You don't expect us to eat here, do you?'

'I…I thought the dining room…'

'Dart will be entertaining the other guest there. Come now,' he said, coming toward her. 'Tell me where you wish to go. If you don't, I will choose the place, and I doubt you'd care for my bedchamber.'

'I don't understand what you're asking,' she replied, frowning.

He sighed. 'I didn't know humans were so dull-witted.'

'I'm not dull-witted,' she said hotly. 'I just don't understand…'

A crystal appeared in his hand. 'Imagine where you wish to go, and we'll go. I have the power to create any world for you.' His voice dropped, becoming silky smooth, inviting. 'I can give you all your dreams, Sarah. You merely have to choose.'

Sarah trembled as his words reminded her of another Jareth. _Just fear me, love me, do as I say and I will be your slave._ Was this Jareth so much different than the other one? As he had told her at their parting, they were one in the same man. They spoke the same words. They offered the same dreams.

She took the crystal between her fingers.

'Anywhere?' She asked, lifting a dark brow.

'If you can imagine it, so will it be.'

She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, they were standing in the middle of the penthouse's living room. Jareth was looking around with something akin to disgust on his face.

'All the places in all the worlds and you chose this?' He demanded. 'Where the bloody bog are we? A goblin hole?'

'You said you wanted to see the Aboveground.' She extended her arms. 'Well, this is it.'

His expression lost some of its scorn, and he walked over to the wall of glass looking out over the city skyline. 'What are all those lights? There are too many to be firepots.

'The stationary ones are apartment buildings and offices. The moving ones are headlights on cars.'

'What are cars?'

'Horseless carriages.'

'They move much faster,' he noted.

'Some move even faster than that,' she told him, thinking of his Lamborghini.

He seemed fascinated so she left him and headed to the kitchen. For an illusion, it was very thorough, she thought as she opened the refrigerator door and found it fully stocked. She was removing items to cook a dinner when he appeared in the doorway.

'What are you doing?'

'Cooking dinner.'

'Let the servants do it.'

'In the Aboveground, only rich people have servants.'

She started to remove a package of peas from the freezer when his hand on her wrist stopped her. She looked at him. He was wearing that arrogant, 'do as I say' look again.

'What?'

'You will not cook,' he told her. 'That's goblin work.'

'There aren't any goblins here,' she pointed out. 'If I don't cook, no one will.'

He snapped his fingers. 'Dinner is served.'

**SCENE CHANGE**

Dart sat at the head of the long dining room table, watching his guests stuffed themselves with the finest food his kitchen could offer. The wild boar with truffles did not tempt him in the least. He could not decide if his appetite was suffering because Dowager Gwen was nattering in his ear like a bloody bog-wife or because Linda Williams was sandwiched between two men young enough to be her sons. Whatever the cause it was not improving his already severely tested self-control. In fact, if he held his wineglass any tighter, it might just shatter.

'I really must insist on a rematch,' Gwen was shrieking. Was everything that woman said a shriek, he wondered as his eyes wandered down the table, coming to rest of the gentle swell of Linda's bosom. 'Things must be fair.'

The two pups beside her seemed equally fascinated by the smooth creaminess exposed by the low neckline. Really, he thought with a snort, her attire was disgraceful. He had conveniently forgotten that he'd been the one to supply her wardrobe.

'Was it fair for Lady Sarah to be pelted with chestnuts?' He asked, his eyes traveling up a delicate jaw to pair of full, red lips.

'There's no proof that Esther was involved,' Gwen shrieked.

'I can't imagine who else would want to cheat.'

'Well, if we're going to talk about cheating…,' came the shriek.

'No, Madam,' he interrupted, getting to his feet, 'we're not going to talk about it. I've heard more than enough on the subject.'

Without another word, he stalked out of the room, leaving his guests and his dessert behind. He headed for the sanctuary of his study where he hoped to erase the image of Linda Williams' delightfully rounded bosom with pipe and beer.

So far neither had offered much relief from the disturbing images that had plagued his mind since she'd slapped him. What was he, he wondered, seating himself behind his desk and reaching for his pipe, a masochist? A slap should not have aroused his interest. On the contrary, it should have convinced him that humans were to be avoided at all cost.

And besides all that, she'd been a bloody pain in his side since she'd arrived. It was her fault that everyone was cheating except him. He had wanted to several times, especially during that archery competition, but those eyes of hers always seemed to be on him, silently accusing him. It was worse than having a conscious.

He leaned back in his chair, taking a long pull on his pipe and then nearly choked as someone banged on his door. Who the bog could that be? No goblin would knock with such boldness, and Jareth was off having dinner with his piece of fluff.

'Come in,' he growled.

Linda's dark head appeared around the edge of the door. 'May I come in?'

Dart stared at her, astonished. What was she doing here? It wasn't as if they were on friendly terms. Most would even call them adversaries. Had his thoughts somehow conjured her up without him being aware?

'Well,' Linda asked when he continued to stare at her, 'may I come in or not?'

'I told you to, didn't I?'

She made a face at his bad-tempered reply but came in anyway. He watched as she sashayed across the room, her curves hugged by form-fitting black dress that flared out at her knees. She seated herself on one of the sofas that flanked his desk.

He didn't know quite what to do with her planted on his sofa so he got up, moving toward an ebony cabinet. 'I was just about to pour myself a beer. Would you care for one?'

'I don't like beer.'

'Wine then?'

'If it's not too much trouble.'

He poured the drinks and then walked over, handing her a glass full of deep red, almost purple liquid. She took it, and he turned to go back to his seat. Violent coughing stepped him in his tracks, and he turned back. Linda was leaning forward, her hand to her throat. She seemed to be gasping for air. He gave her a couple whacks on the back, which only earned him a teary-eyed glare.

'You call that wine?' She gasped.

'Goblin wine, yes,' he allowed. 'What's wrong with it?'

'It's a bit strong, don't you think?'

He snatched the glass from her hand, took a swallow and then handed it back to her. 'Tastes fine to me. What do you humans drink?'

'Chardonnay, Riesling, Pinot Noir…'

'Faerie pee,' he dismissed, settling himself in his chair. One heel landed on the desk followed by another one as he leaned back. 'Now, tell me, what's so urgent that you had to barge in here and interrupt my valuable time.'

'Valuable time,' she snorted. 'I'd hardly call swilling beer and smoking a dirty, old pipe a 'valuable' use of your time.'

'What I do with my time is no concern of yours, Madam.'

'Well, as a king, I would think you'd be better employed…'

'WHAT DO YOU WANT?' He roared.

'You really ought to do something about that anger issue. It'll put you in the grave before your 100th birthday.'

'I passed my 100th birthday some time ago.'

'I told Sarah you were an old goat.'

'And you're a…'

'I was merely trying to be helpful to you,' she interrupted, leaning forward to place the untouched wine on his desk and in the process providing him with an excellent view of the infamous bosom. 'You needn't get insulting.'

'Helpful? That's a laugh. You've been nothing but a pain in my side.'

She smiled. 'I'm glad you noticed. I have been trying my best.'

A chuckle rose in his throat, which he quickly smothered. He would_ not _find this woman amusing. 'Do you think we could get to the reason for your visit in the next,' he sent a sardonic glance at the clock on his wall, 'hour or so?'

'Very well,' she said, her face suddenly becoming serious. 'I felt I ought to warn you. Jareth is becoming suspicious. He is pressing Sarah as to why she's here. I am more concerned for her than you, of course. There is no easy way for her to answer his questions without revealing the terms of the wager.

He took a long draw on his pipe, blowing a smoke ring toward the ceiling. 'That's her problem, not mine.'

'That's what I thought you'd say so I advised her to direct all inquiries to you.'

_'You what?' _The boots thudded to the floor as Dart sat up in his chair.

'I suspect you may receive a visit from your brother upon the completion of their dinner date.' She smiled sweetly. 'I hope you've prepared your answers in advance. Jareth seems to be a man of single-minded tenacity. I suspect he won't let you be until you provide a satisfactory explanation for our presence here, which may prove difficult since humans are forbidden in the Underground.'

Dart glared at her. How dare she sic his brother on him! She was right. Jareth could be an absolute pest when he wanted to know something. He wouldn't get a minute's peace until he supplied some sort of answer.

'You, _wench_,' he said, placing emphasis on the word she so hated, 'are as devious as a bog devil.'

'I told you never to call me that.'

'Or you'll what?' He asked, getting to his feet and coming towards her. 'Slap me again? I assure you, _wench_, that you only slap a Goblin King once and get away with it.'

'And what will you do?' She taunted, staring up at him. 'Clap me in irons and put me in your dungeon?'

'No, I don't think so,' he murmured. 'I have a better place to put you.'

'On the rack you threatened my daughter with?'

His hand closed around one wrist, pulling her upright. She struggled, trying to shake off his hand, but with a deft twist of his wrist, her arm went behind her back, forcing her up against him. She stared up at him, her breath coming in quick pants that drew his eyes downward once more.

'I was thinking of something much more pleasurable… for both of us.'

She must have read his meaning in his eyes for her free hand came up. He caught it, twisting it behind her back as well.

'If you don't let me go, I'll scream,' she threatened.

'Then we must do something about that mouth, must we?'

She opened her mouth to carry out her threat, but nothing but a muffled grunt came out because Dart's mouth was on hers. She struggled like a bloody bog-cat, twisting in his arms, kicking with her feet. She might have succeeded in landing a good shot if her tight skirt hadn't restricted movement above the knees. Perhaps her clothing wasn't so bad after all, he thought, deepening the kiss.

Finally his superior strength and persistence won out. Her mouth softened, responded. Feeling the change, he released her arms. They snaked around his neck, pulling him closer, if such a thing were possible.

He bent, swinging her up in his arms, striding toward the door.

'Where…where are we going?'

She sounded dazed, and he smiled with satisfaction. He had conquered the bog-cat. By morning, she would be eating out of his hand.

'I think that's obvious, don't you?'

She shook her head, sending her neat chignon tumbling to her shoulders.

'To my bedchamber.'

'Where?' She sounded a little more alert, but he wasn't concerned. She was his now.

'Don't sound so shocked, cat,' he told her, reaching the door. 'It's the logical next step.'

He opened the door and just as quickly she reached out a hand and shut it again. 'Next step to what?'

'To that,' he said, nodding toward the place they'd been.

'Put me down.'

'Whatever for?'

'Because I'm not ready for _that_. I…I don't even like you.'

He was surprised how much that stung. It almost felt like she'd slapped him again, and he let her feet drop to the floor. She immediately put distance between them. He watched as she picked up the wineglass and took a hefty gulp. She didn't cough, but she did wince as the liquid burnt its way down her throat. With shaky hands, she tried to re-assemble her hair.

'You want me,' he stated firmly, arrogantly.

She turned around to look at him. 'Wanting is not enough.'

His mouth twisted into a sneer. 'I suppose you want me to say I love you.'

'No,' she said, shaking her head, 'I've had my fair share of that word, and it's not all it's cracked up to be.'

'You can say that yet you support those two young fools?'

'I'm not saying I don't believe in it,' she amended. 'I'm just saying I'm beyond the word. As Eliza Doolittle sings to Freddie 'Don't talk of love burning so bright. If you're in love, show me!'

'Who?' She'd totally lost him.

'Oh, never mind,' she muttered. 'I'm just saying I want more than the words. I want…' she bit her lip as though to keep it from trembling, 'I want a man who doesn't cheat.'

And with that she pushed past him and ran out of the door.

What the bog was that all about, he asked himself as he stared at the open door, bewildered. A man who doesn't cheat? Was that a reference to his own tendency to arrange things to his liking or something else? He supposed the girl, Sarah, would know, but he'd be bogged before she asked her.

Closing the door, he returned to his seat. Father had been right, he decided, picking up his beer and draining it. How many times after mother's death had he told Dart that love caused nothing but heartache and to steer clear of it? More than Dart could remember.

Unlike Jareth, Dart had seen what his mother's death had done to his father. It had turned a kind, generous man who had spent hours among his beloved books into a cold tyrant whose only pleasure seemed to be kicking goblins. He hadn't had to tell Dart to disdain love; Dart had learned that lesson first-hand.

And now this crazy woman was saying she didn't want love! Then what the bog was the problem? They were of one mind so stop all this gibberish about someone called Eliza Doolittle and get between sheets, for bog's sake!

Jumping to his feet, he went to the cabinet, refilling his beer glass. He downed it and then poured another. It had been a long time since he'd been rip-roaring, goblin drunk, but tonight it seemed like a damn good idea.

**SCENE CHANGE**

'Is this where you and the pale-haired man lived?'

Sarah nearly choked on her cheesecake. She knew it was inevitable that he'd ask, but she had hoped to at least make it through dinner.

'What makes you think that?'

'Of all the places you could have gone, you came here. I naturally ask myself why, and the answer I get is that it must be special to you for some reason.' He let his eyes drift around the room. 'There's nothing particularly attractive about the place so it must have been the man. Am I right?'

Why hide it, she thought, weary of the charade that she was forced to play. He'd already seen himself in the crystal, and he was not going to let it go until she satisfied his curiosity. From personal experience, she knew how single-minded he could be.

'Yes,' she said, carefully laying her fork on her plate. 'We lived here together…briefly.'

'Briefly? You weren't together long?'

'We'd known each other for many years, but our time together was very short.'

He frowned. 'What happened to him?'

'He…,' she struggled to find the right word, 'left.'

'Then the man is obviously an ass.'

If it hadn't been so serious, she would have laughed. He was basically calling himself an ass. Oh, Jareth, she mused, I hope we'll be able to laugh about this some day.

'I told you he had no choice.'

'What was he?' Jareth asked, his lip curling with scorn. 'Married to another woman?'

_No, but he will be if you don't ask me to marry you, you dolt!_

'Let's just agree that he's gone, ok? I don't think the reason is important to our,' again she struggled for the appropriate word, 'current situation.'

'Are you using me to make him jealous? To bring him running back to you?'

He's already jealous, Sarah mused, noting the way his fingers were clenching and unclenching around the neck of his wineglass, and didn't know it.

'No,' she told him. 'Marrying you will not make him jealous. In fact, I think he'd be delighted.'

Jareth suddenly leapt to his feet, nearly overturning his chair. 'How can you love this man? Doesn't that prove he's not worth your regard? What kind of man cheers when the woman he supposedly loves marries another man?' He stalked over to the wall of windows, stood for a moment, hands on hips, staring down before turning and looking at her with fierce eyes. 'Be assured, Sarah of the Aboveground, that I would not be so feeble. If you were mine, I would never let you go.'

_Then ask me to marry you, you idiot!_

'But I'm not yours, am I? I'm just one of many vying for your hand.'

\ 'Never that. You are unique among women. They flatter me, assuring me that I am perfect just as I am. You, on the other hand, challenge me to be more than I am.'

They stared at each other, the familiar electricity flowing between them.

'Come,' he said, holding out his hand. 'Dance with me.'

It was a command, but Sarah didn't care. She wanted to be close to him, to feel his arms around her again.

'There's no music.'

He waved his hand and the piano in the corner started playing. It was a slow, dreamy waltz that reminded her of the masquerade where she first started to fall in love with him. She took a step in his direction, and suddenly she was in his arms, and it felt like coming home. It had been so long since he'd held her, and she found herself forgetting that there was a wager and the man currently holding her wasn't the Jareth she'd fell in love with. She sighed, placing her head against his shoulder. It was all so confusing.

'Sarah?'

'Hmmm?'

'This place makes me feel strange. _You_ make me feel strange.'

She lifted her head. 'In what way?'

'In this place, with you, I don't feel like a Goblin King.' His eyes searched hers. 'Doesn't that sound crazy?'

'No,' she said, smiling up at him, 'it sounds just right.'

There was a long pause and then he did something completely out of character. He asked rather than took. His hand touched the side of her face. 'May I kiss you?'

In answer, she reached up and pulled his head down to hers.

**SCENE CHANGE**

Jareth walked from the illusion into Sarah's bedchamber. It was late, well past midnight. The woman in his arms was asleep, her cheek resting against his shoulder, her breath slow and even. She'd fallen asleep on the sofa while he'd fiddled with the piano, tapping out poignant melodies with one finger.

After the kiss, he could have pressed his advantage. It had been obvious that she wouldn't have said no or even slapped his face, but he had stopped, taking a hasty step back, putting distance between them. He had taken refuge behind the piano.

He had seen the confusion in her eyes, but she had not demanded an explanation…or pressed her advantage. If she had pursued him, he wouldn't have had the resolve to resist once more. It had taken all of his willpower just to step away.

And why had he? Because something inside of him had wanted it to mean more than a roll in the sheets. She loved another man. How could he bed her when he knew that? She'd be thinking of _him_, not Jareth. Strangely, bizarrely wanting simply hadn't been enough. He wanted more.

Laying her gently on the bed, he quickly left the room. For several long moments, he stood outside her door, head bent as he tried to sort through the chaos swirling like a whirlpool inside of him. There's was only thing he knew for certain. He was falling in love with her, and it scared the bog out of him.

Hadn't father and Dart warned him against such emotion? It was dangerous they'd said. It destroyed a man's reason, his willpower, and it would eventually destroy his life, leaving him sick and empty inside. They had drilled that lesson into him over and over again. But…he ran a not so steady hand through his hair…how could this warm, tender feeling welling up inside of him be dangerous?

Dart, he decided, heading for his brother's bedchamber. He must talk to Dart, have him explain once again why love was to be avoided. He must hear the voice of reason before he did something foolish…like marry a woman who loved another man.

But he didn't find Dart in his bedchamber. He didn't find him in the throne room either. He was beginning to wonder if he were warming some guest's bed when he pushed open the door of the study. The moonlight streaming in through the window clearly revealed his brother's whereabouts. A loud snore told the rest of the story.

'Dart, wake up,' he said, shaking his brother's shoulder.

It took three more shakes before Dart opened a bleary eye. 'Go away.'

The smell of beer was strong. 'Are you drunk?'

'I certainly hope so.'

'What's wrong with you?" Jareth demanded. 'You haven't gotten drunk in a good century.'

'And I'm not drunk now, bog it to hell,' Dart muttered, sitting up with effort. 'You'd think after half a keg of goblin beer a man could get rip-roaring drunk, wouldn't you? But not me. Oh no, not me,' he said with some disgust. 'I've only reached the maudlin stage.'

Jareth stared at him. 'Why do you want to get drunk?'

'Because, dear brother, she doesn't believe in love.'

'Who doesn't?'

'Linda.'

'I don't know why that should bother you,' Jareth pointed out. 'You don't believe in love either.'

Dart's hand slammed down on the desk, rattling anything unfortunate enough to occupy the top. 'That's right. I don't. So tell me, little brother, why am I here instead of upstairs in her bed? Huh? Tell me that.'

'From my observations, I would guess it's because she doesn't like you.'

'Oh, she likes me well enough,' Dart assured him. 'She kissed the bog out of me. But then she had to go and open that mouth and start quoting some wench called Eliza Doolittle, whoever that is, and then here's the kicker, she said she wanted a man who doesn't cheat.' Dart threw up his hands. 'What the bog do you think that means? Cheats? Cheat a what? Cards, horses, archery, goblin chess, three-legged races? Your guess is as good as mine.' He collapsed back into his chair. 'Women! A man can't begin to understand what's going on beneath all that glorious hair.'

Jareth had seen and heard enough.

Come on,' he said, almost bodily lifting his brother out of the chair. 'You're drunker than you think. The best place for you is in bed.'

Ten minutes later, he left Dart's room. He hadn't needed a voice of reason. Seeing was believing. Sarah's mother had in a matter of two days reduce his strong, powerful brother into a drunk. Sure, he'd be back to his old self tomorrow, but if the mother could do this to the High King, what would her daughter do to a lowly Goblin King?

His mind made up, he headed for his own bedchamber. On the morrow, he would ignore this strange feeling churning inside of him and avoid Sarah as though his life depended on it. It wouldn't be hard with so many women willing to occupy his time. No doubt his fickle behavior would give her a disgust of him, helping him maintain his resolve.

But as sleep overtook him he heard a small, still voice. It was asking if perhaps it was already too late. Otherwise what was this sick, emptiness that cried at the thought of living a life without her?


	7. Chapter 7 - Love Potion 9

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

_Love Potion #9_

'Mom,' Sarah said, pacing back and forth in sitting room off her mother's bedchamber. 'I just can't understand it. The dinner was wonderful. Yeah, there were a couple tight stops when he asked me about his future self, but he kissed me, and now he's avoiding me like the plague.' She plopped down on the bed. 'I've only got two more days to get him to propose, and how can I do that when he's surrounded himself with pack of women?'

Linda was only half listening. She had her own problems. Yes, certainly, Sarah's dilemma did take precedent since it involved a quickly approaching deadline, but it was hard to concentrate when her mind kept straying back to that night in Dart's study. Had she made a mistake?

She was beginning to think so, especially when their eyes would meet over the dining room table or during some scheduled activity. Now it was his eyes that were accusing, not hers. Had she led him on? No, of course not. It had just…happened. He'd been the one to force the issue, she reminded herself. So why did she feel so ashamed?

And of course, it didn't help matters that every time he got within a few feet, her body would go haywire. She hadn't felt this way since…but that hadn't been love. How could it have been when he'd run off with her understudy?

Would Dart run off with one's understudy? No, never. She had a feeling that once a Goblin King fell in love it was forever. Dart would be as single-minded about his lady as Jareth had been about Sarah. So what's your problem, that little voice asked. He doesn't believe in love, she answered back.

'Mom,' Sarah said, looking at her closely, 'are you ok?'

'Just a little tired. It's probably just this goblin air. Now,' she said with forced brightness, 'what were you saying?'

'I was saying that I only have two days left to get Jareth to propose, and he's been avoiding me ever since our dinner together.'

'Think back,' Linda urged, pushing thoughts of Dart aside, 'did anything unusual happen?'

'Yes,' Sarah answered, her voice sullen. 'He didn't take me to bed.'

'Did you want him too?'

'I would have with a little encouragement, I was missing him so much that night, but instead he goes over and starts banging away on the blasted piano. Next thing I know I'm waking up in my bedchamber alone and fully dressed.'

'That's unusual, alright,' Linda agreed.

Sarah jumped up and started pacing again. 'It's absolutely bizarre. He propositions me the first night, no embarrassment, no regret, and then when I finally agree, he returns me to my bedchamber like I'm a lost package he happened to find along the roadside. Then he surrounds himself with females that he showed no interest in prior to that night. What's going on?'

'Sounds to me like he's scared.'

'Scared? Of what?'

'Of falling in love. Men do that, you know. They run.'

_Dart didn't run, _a voice whispered in Linda's ear._ You were the one running. What were you afraid of?_

'We don't have time for him to run,' Sarah exclaimed, clearly frustrated.

'Then you're going to have to corner him, run him to ground, and once you've got him cornered, tell him straight out that you love him and want to marry him.'

'I don't know if he'll believe me. He thinks I'm in love with the pale-haired man.'

'But _he's_ the pale-haired man.'

'I know,' Sarah cried, throwing her hands in the air. 'This is the craziest situation I've ever been in. I feel like a dog chasing its tail.'

Well,' Linda told her, 'you're just going to have to _make _him believe you.'

'How can I do that with a pack of women hanging on him?'

'Entice him away.'

'If he's deliberately avoiding me, I doubt he's going to willingly put down his human shield.'

'He might if you ask him. So far you haven't asked him. You haven't tested his resolve. If he's avoiding you, that means he doesn't trust himself, and you've allowed him to stay behind his shield. Send him a note. Ask him to meet you somewhere.'

Sarah thought for a moment. 'The library. I'll invite him to meet me in the library. He feels comfortable there.'

'Good,' Linda said, some excitement entering her voice as their scheme took shape, 'and when you get him there, back him up against his books and come on to him like Sugarpuss O'Shea did to Professor Potts.** Don't let him out of that library until he's yours, honey.'

_In Another Part of the Castle…_

'Mother,' Esther wailed, her gold ringlets bouncing as she paced back and forth in her mother's sitting room, 'I've only got two more days to get Jareth to propose, and how can I do that when he's constantly surrounded by all those other women? I thought once that _human _fell out of favor, I'd have a better chance, but it's worse now than it was before.'

'The solution is simple, my dear,' Dowager Gwen shrieked, clapping her hands. Drusilla instantly appeared in the doorway. 'Toad, get me my case. It's under the bed.'

Drusilla scurried off to do her mother's bidding and returned a couple seconds later lugging a large leather case. Gwen took the case, laying it on the table between the two sofas. Then she went to the windows and drew the curtains. Removing a key from her bosom, she slid it into the case's lock, turned it and carefully lifted the lid. Rows and rows of bottles winked at them in the dim light.

She studied the bottles for a long moment, her lips pursed in thought, and then selected a heart-shaped vial holding a pale pink liquid. 'Ah, here we go,' she murmured, handing the bottle to Esther. 'Aphrodite's Elixir of Love. Put a drop in Jareth's drink and the first woman he sees he'll fall madly in love with. It only lasted until midnight so get his brother to marry you right on the spot. As High King he's has the authority to perform marriage ceremonies. And don't worry. He wants him married off as much as we do so he won't balk at the idea.'

'But mother,' Esther said, her fair brow wrinkling, 'potions are forbidden. We could be disqualified.'

'By the time they realize a potion was used, it'll be too late. You'll be married to him.'

Esther was still frowning. 'How do I make sure I'm the first woman he sees?'

'Oh, for bog's sake, Esther, use your imagination,' Gwen shrieked, closing the case with a snap. 'I can't do everything for you.'

'But mother…' came the wail.

'Oh, Esther, do stop wailing like a bog-cat in heat,' Dowager Gwen shrieked. 'You know it gives me a headache.'

That, of course, elicited more wails from Esther which in turn elicited more shrieks from Gwen, and back and forth it went, allowing Drusilla to slip from the room unnoticed.

**SCENE CHANGE**

Toby was enjoying a good roll when Dru entered the stable. He leapt to his feet, his flanks covered with bit of straw, as soon as he saw her. She looked upset, the freckles on her nose standing out against pale skin.

'What's wrong?'

'Oh, Toby,' she cried, throwing her arms around his neck and burying her face in his tan fur, 'my sister and mother are going to do the meanest thing. They're going to put a love potion in the Goblin King's drink so he'll fall in love with Esther and marry her before it wears off Whatever will we do?'

He didn't answer at first. He was too shocked. He'd never been hugged by a girl before, and it felt…weird. He liked it and disliked it at the same time. He cleared his throat with a sort of horsey cough and took a step backwards, breaking her grip. She let him go but continued to look up at him with wide, trusting eyes. She was waiting for his leadership.

'We stop them, of course,' he told her.

'How?'

'Steal the glass before Jareth can drink it.' He walked from one end of the stable to the other, thinking. 'I'll create a distraction while you steal the glass. What are their plans for tonight? Another ball?'

She shook her head. 'No, cards.'

'Where at?'

'In the blue drawing room.'

'The one with the French doors into the garden?'

She nodded.

'Terrific!' He exclaimed, his ears twitching with excitement. 'I'll kick up such a ruckus that they'll have to come into the garden. While everyone's out looking for the demon horse, you can slip in and take the glass. You'd better replace it with another one or she might add another dose if he has to get more wine because his glass is missing.' He looked at her like general reviewing his troops. 'You'll have to keep an eye on her so you'll know when she adds the potion. When she does, you'll have to act fast. There'll be no time to waste. You'll have to give me some kind of signal.'

'There's a smaller room off to the side, an antechamber or something,' she said. 'I'll hide in there and watch. When I see her add the potion, I'll wave a candle in front of the window.'

''Good,' Toby said. 'I'll be outside in the garden at 8 o'clock sharp.'

'You're the smartest horse I know,' she said with a smile, reaching in her pocket and pulling out an apple, which she held out to him. 'I bet you're even smarter as a boy. I wish I'd known you when you were a boy.'

Toby took a bite of the apple and for the first time since becoming a horse began to wish that he were a boy again.

**SCENE CHANGE***

Jareth hated Fizzbin, and he particularly hated playing it with the Lady Esther as his partner. She spent too much time squinting at her cards, and she was constantly dropping things so that he and the other couple who were their opponents had to keep leaning over and retrieving them for her.

To top it off, she kept urging him to get a glass of wine from one of the passing goblins. He didn't want any wine, damn it! He had always found the stuff to taste like an old shoe boiled in turpentine. But to shut her up, he'd grabbed one off a passing tray, and shortly afterwards, she had sneezed sending her hand of cards fluttering in all directions. He and the other couple had had to scramble to retrieve them.

One of the cards had landed beside Sarah's chair where she was playing at a nearby table, that puppy Rhys as her partner. When he'd gone to retrieve it, they had reached for it at the same time, their hands meeting. Then their eyes had met, and that empty feeling had nearly suffocated him. Avoiding her had accomplished nothing. So why the bog was he spending his time with a bunch of silly females instead of being where he really wanted to be? It was madness, sheer madness.

He had just returned to his seat when a horrendous noise exploded outside the French doors leading to the garden. It sounds like a horse banging its hooves against a brass gong. There were a lot of whinnies interspersed with thumping and banging and deafening clangs. He as well as everyone else got to their feet to see what was causing the noise.

**SCENE CHANGE**

Dart strode down the hallway, a dark scowl on his face. What the bog was going on in the blue drawing room? They were supposed to be playing Fizzbin, not auditioning for a blasted marching band. How could he drown his sorrows in beer and fragrant smoke with this racket going on? It was loud enough to wake the bog zombies, and that was something no one wanted to happen.

He was a foot away from the door of the drawing room when a small figure barreled into him. It was a girl of perhaps twelve, and she was carrying a wineglass. His scowl deepened. So she had taken the opportunity of the racket to steal some wine. Bloody kids. Always wanting to taste the forbidden fruit.

'What's this?' He demanded, giving her his best Goblin glower. 'Stealing wine?'

'Uh, no,' she stammered. 'I…I…'

He took the wineglass from her, cuffed her ear and then sent her on her way. She disappeared down the hallway.

'Kids,' he muttered, taking a swallow of the wine and then another.

Peeking around a corner, the girl watched with horrified eyes as he drained the glass.

**SCENE CHANGE**

'It's one of those demon horses that come down out of the mountains once a year to carry off babies and little children,' someone cried. 'They drown them in the lake up there.'

'It's just a normal horse,' someone else called out. 'Probably ate some of that wacky weed that grows along creek beds.'

Jareth pushed his way to the front. Since Dart wasn't present – a common occurrence these days - it was his duty to calm their guests. He didn't realize Sarah was beside him until he heard her cry out. 'Toby, what in the world is wrong with you? You're scaring everyone half to death! Stop this racket at once!'

The horse stopped its banging and hung its head, looking ashamed of itself.

'You know this horse,' he asked her.

'Uh, yes,' she said, going over and touching the horse's nose, 'he sort of belongs to me. I didn't even realize he was here. I'm sorry if he's caused any trouble.'

'I'm not surprised that _she _has a crazy horse,' Lady Esther mocked. 'I suppose it talks too. Probably says 'yes, ma'am' and 'pass the sugar'.'

Everyone laughed, causing a bright red blush to color Sarah's cheeks. She stood silently, her chin held high despite Esther's taunt as the crowd began to filter back inside, the men laughing openly, the ladies twittered behind brightly colored fans.

Jareth wanted to say something to ease her embarrassment but thought better of it. Goblin Kings never offered comfort. It was a sign of weakness or at least that's what his father had said. He turned to go as well, but a hand on his sleeve stopped him. He looked down. It was Sarah's hand, and in her other hand, she was holding out a folded piece of paper.

'Take it,' she whispered.

He did, and she hurried away without another word.

Returning to his seat, he opened the slip of paper. On it was written: _Meet me in the library at ten o'clock._ He glanced at the clock. It was thirteen minutes to ten.

'Why, Jareth,' Lady Esther was saying, 'you look unsettled. That horse and its owner must have annoyed you. Have a sip of wine. It'll calm you.'

His fingers curled around the note, crushing it. 'If anything has annoyed me, it's you, Madame. Such cruelty to another lady in front of others is unacceptable, even in this castle, and leaves no doubt of your character.' He stood up. 'And, as I have told you numerous times this evening, I do not want any wine.'

**SCENE CHANGE**

As soon as Sarah had given Jareth the note, she'd left the drawing room. Even if she hadn't had this assignation, she wouldn't have wanted to stay, not as long as Lady Esther was queen of the drawing room. It had taken all her willpower not punched the girl on her turned-up nose.

She had not taken more than two steps out of the drawing room door when she barreled into something hard and immovable. The force of the collision sent her stumbling back a few inches, but she quickly righted herself and glanced up. Dart's harsh features stared down at her.

'Oh, I'm sorry,' she said, offering smile. 'I…I forgot something upstairs. I was just running up to get it.'

She made to go around him, but his arm flashed out, stopping her. To her utter amazement, he caught both of her hands in his and raised them to his mouth, kissing them most fervently. It wasn't Toby who'd gotten into the wacky weed, Sarah decided, staring at him, open-mouthed, it was the Goblin Realm's High King.

'Please, sir,' she said, trying to disentangle her hands from his, 'you're making me uncomfortable.'

He held on like a barnacle. 'Your perfume is intoxicating,' he breathed. 'What is it? Jasmine?'

'It's soap,' she told him.

'On you even soap smells like a bouquet of desert flowers,' he murmured.

When his lips started traveling up her arm, she decided desperate times called for desperate measures. Raising her heel, she slammed it into his instep. He grunted, releasing his grip long enough for her to escape. She ran down the hallway as though the hounds of hell were on her heels.

Once inside the library, she leaned against the doors, breathing heavily. What the hell was that all about? Dart was never, ever shown any kind of attraction to her, and here he was nibbling on her arm as though it were prime rib or something. It was…bizarre.

She stepped away from the door, moving toward the red sofas. Jareth would be there any minute, and she wanted to be calm, cool and collected, not hot and sweaty from a tussle with his brother in the hallway. She took several deep breathes, trying to calm herself, but all was in vain. Seconds later, the door burst open and Dart entered.

'You're right, my sweet,' Dart said, coming toward her. 'The hallway was much too public for our lovemaking. The library is a much better choice.'

'Lovemaking,' Sarah squeaked, putting a sofa between them. 'Are you mad?'

'Yes, I'm mad,' he confirmed, 'mad with love for you. Come, my desert flower, let me lose myself in your fragrance.'

He lunged for her as she dashed around the side of the sofa, hoping to reach the library door. There was the sound of tearing fabric. She looked down. His hand had caught the left side of her bodice, tearing it to her waist and exposing a rounded breast. She gasped, clutching the fabric to her chest as his arms closed around her, turning her to face him. To her horror, she felt his lips clamp down on hers.

'WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS GOING ON IN HERE?'

Jareth's roar nearly caused Sarah to cry in joy. Thank God, he'd accepted her invitation to the library!

She struggled and managed to dislodge Dart's mouth long enough to gasp. 'Jareth, thank God you're here! Your brother has gone mad!'

'Go away, little brother,' Dart ordered. 'This doesn't concern you.'

'Doesn't concern me,' Jareth repeated, coming into the library until he was only a few feet from them. 'You're assaulting the woman I love, and it doesn't concern me?'

Sarah's heart leapt at his words. _He loved her!_

'I'm not assaulting her,' Dart retorted. 'I'm making love to her.'

'Over my dead body,' Jareth snarled.

'That can be arranged. Choose your weapon. Pistols or swords?'

This was getting totally out of hand, Sarah thought, glancing from one brother's face to the other. Both were set in hard, cold lines. Was Dart suggesting a duel?

'Neither,' Jareth replied. 'I've got a better idea. Something a little less civilized.'

Balling a fist, he swung. Sarah ducked just as his knuckles connected with Dart's jaw. The High King stumbled backwards. His legs hit the sofa, unbalancing him and sending him careening into a nearby table. There was a loud cracking sound, and then Dart was on the floor, unmoving.

It was at that moment that Linda, followed by a girl with brown hair, rushed into the room. She fell to her knees beside Dart.

'He's not…' Sarah trailed off.

'No,' Linda said, shaking her head, 'he's alive. He's just knocked out. He'll have a hell of a headache when he wakes up.'

'Good,' Jareth retorted. 'He deserves it. I only wish I'd broken his jaw as well.'

'You didn't break his jaw,' Linda said, holding up something small and white, 'but you managed to dislodge a tooth.'

'What happened to him?' Sarah asked. 'He was acting like a mad man. He was kissing my hands and nibbling on my arm and chasing me around sofas.' She looked down at the bodice she was still clutching. 'If Jareth hadn't arrived when he did, I don't know what would have happened.'

'I'll tell you what would have happened,' Jareth told her, his expression unrepentant. 'He'd be dead rather than unconscious. If he had,' his fists clenched and unclenched, 'managed to carry out his plans, he'd be at the bottom of the bog right now.'

'But it wasn't his fault,' the girl cried, speaking for the first time. 'It was the potion.'

'Who are you?' Jareth demanded. 'And what do you know about what happened here tonight?'

'My name's Drusilla, but everybody calls me Toad. You can call me Toad, if you like. I don't mind.'

Jareth looked down his nose at her. 'I will not call you or anyone else such a repulsive nickname. If your name is Drusilla, you'll be called Drusilla.'

She smiled up at him shyly. 'Thank you, Mr. Goblin King.'

'My name's Jareth. Just call me Jareth.'

Linda stood up, coming over to put an arm along Drusilla's shoulders. 'Drusilla is Lady Esther's younger sister.'

'I should have known that bog-cat had something to do with it,' Jareth muttered.

'When she heard her mother and Esther plotting to put a love potion in your drink, she went and told Toby. I guess she and Toby have become good friends over the last few days. Instead of coming to an adult like they should have,' Linda sent the girl a stern look, 'they decided to take matters into their own hands. While Toby caused a ruckus outside, Drusilla switched wineglasses. Unfortunately, she ran into Dart, and he took the glass from her and drank it himself. The potion caused him to fall madly in love with the first woman he saw, and that just happened to be Sarah.'

'Potions are forbidden,' Jareth said, his voice tight.

'I guess they were desperate,' Linda replied. 'There's only two days left to the house party, and you were showing no signs of succumbing to Esther's charms so they decided to help you along a bit.'

'He won't be madly in love with me forever, will he?' Sarah asked, dreading the answer.

'Fortunately, it only lasts until midnight.'

'Thank God for that,' Sarah breathed.

'Well,' Linda said, turning to look at Dart's unmoving body, 'we'd better get a few goblins up here and get him to his bedchamber. Drusilla tells me that her mama's potions pack a powerful punch. He'll have something like a hangover when he wakes up…not to mention a nasty headache and missing tooth. I suspect he'll be one hell of an angry Goblin King.'

**SCENE CHANGE**

Jareth stood staring at the empty fireplace, his hands clasped behind his back. His anger, which had been at a raging boil only an hour ago, was now at a slow simmer. It would take a while for it to dissipate completely. Never in all his life had he been as enraged as when he'd seen that torn bodice. He could have cheerfully killed Dart with his bare hands. If Sarah hadn't invited him to the library, he shuddered to think what would have happened. Lady Esther and her mother had a lot to answer for.

'Why did you ask me to the library tonight?'

He heard Sarah shift on the sofa behind him. 'I guess I was desperate. Just like Lady Esther.'

'Desperate? Why?'

'You can ask that when you've been shunning me for days now?'

He grimaced. Yes, he'd shunned her, and it had been a mistake. It had led to this entire fiasco. If he'd accepted his feelings and stated his intentions for all to hear, then perhaps Lady Esther wouldn't have resorted to a love potion. She and her mother would have known that they had no hope. Still, he mused, his lip twisting, women like that didn't give up easily.

'What were your intentions in bringing me here?'

'I'd rather show you.'

That got his attention. He turned and found himself nose to nose with her. She had somehow come up behind him without him realizing it. She had changed her dress during the time spent getting Dart to his room and was now fully clad. Nevertheless, her closeness immediately sent his pulse racing. He took a step back. She followed. This continued until his back came up hard against the stone of the fireplace. She had him cornered.

'Did you mean what you said to Dart?'

'You'll have to be specific,' he hedged. 'I said several things.'

Her hands slid up the fabric of his jacket. 'Am I the woman you love?'

He tried a chuckle. 'I sort of lost my head there, didn't I?'

'Because if I am,' she leaned closer, 'I'd like to tell you the feeling's mutual. You're the man I love.'

He frowned. 'Don't lie to me, Sarah. Don't pity me. I know you're in love with the pale-haired man in the crystal.' His hands suddenly shot out, grasping her arms, his eyes intense with some unknown emotion. 'But I promise you I'll steal your love from him if it's the last time I do. Let me show you how much more you can love me than him. If you will give yourself to me, you won't regret it. I will love you like no man has ever loved a woman.'

'Oh, Jareth,' she sighed, staring up at him with moist eyes, 'you already have stolen it, you ridiculous Goblin King. I love you. I brought you here tonight to tell you that, to beg you to make me as your bride, to offer to love you and fear you and do as you say.'

'And I will be your slave,' he murmured.

'Yes,' she said, smiling up at him, 'that's exactly how it goes.'

Without another word, he bent and swept her into his arms. He still didn't quite believe her, but he wasn't going to look a gift goblin in the mouth. He was going to take what he could get. He would place his stamp of ownership on her. He would make her his in every way possible, and if that pale-haired man ever showed up, just let him try to take her from him. Goblin Kings never let go of what they had made theirs.

**SCENE CHANGE**

'Oh, bloody bog, my head,' Dart groaned, clutching that offense piece of anatomy. 'What the hell happened to me? I feel like I've been run over by a bog buffalo.'

'You've been the victim of a love potion. One of Dowager Gwen's best, I'm told.'

It was the wench's voice. What was she doing in his bedchamber? It _was_ his bedchamber, wasn't it? He opened a bleary eye to inspect his surrounding. No, it wasn't his bedchamber. It was the sitting room attached to it, and he was sprawled across the sofa like a sack of potatoes. Obviously someone must have dumped him there. One would think a High King would be treated with a little more respect and care, he thought with a healthy amount of righteous indignation.

His eye searched for the woman and found her. She was kneeling beside his makeshift bed. Despite the throbbing in his head, the rest of his body immediately reacted to the sight of her, and he let out another groan. She, however, took the groan as evidence of pain and a glass of some thick red liquid was shoved into his face.

'Here,' she urged, 'drink this. It'll make you feel better.'

Dart eyed it suspiciously. 'What is it?'

'An old human remedy for hangovers.'

'I don't have a hangover,' he told her, pushing the glass aside. 'I'd only got half a glass of beer down me before that infernal clanging began.'

'This isn't an alcohol hangover. It's a love potion hangover.'

'Love potion?' He echoed, trying to sit up. She pushed him back down. 'You keep saying that. Love potions are strictly forbidden. Anyone caught using one will be disqualified. And besides,' he said, scowling, 'why in the name of bogdom would anyone use one on me?'

'Don't you think anybody would want you to fall in love with them?'

She had turned away to place the glass on a nearby table so he couldn't see her face, but there was something in her voice that made his heart beat a little faster.

But it must have been a rhetorical question because she gave him no time to answer. She turned back, saying, 'It wasn't intended for you.'

'Then who…'

'I think that's obvious, don't you? You're the one that invented this ridiculous competition with your brother as grand prize.'

His scowl deepened. 'I'm not giving him away like a trophy. I'm giving him the right to choose his own bride.'

'Are you?' Before he could defend himself further, she continued on. 'He wasn't choosing her so Lady Esther got a little desperate. She put a love potion in Jareth's wine. Drusilla had overheard her mother and sister's plan so…'

'Wait a minute,' he interrupted. 'Who the devil is Drusilla?'

'Lady Esther's younger sister. She and Toby have become good friends…'

'You mean the horse.'

She nodded. 'And between the two of them they devised a plan to stop Lady Esther. While Toby caused a distraction outside, the infernal clanging as you so eloquently put it, Drusilla switched wineglasses. Unfortunately, you stopped her in the hallway, took the wineglass from her and drank it yourself. Don't you know better than to drink from strange wineglasses?'

'That explains the 'hangover',' he said, ignoring her question, 'but how the devil did I get this knot on my head and a,' he touched his face, wincing, 'sore jaw?'

'You've also got a missing tooth.'

His tongue searched his mouth, and he scowled when he found a gap between two molars. 'Damn it, I know a love potion doesn't knock teeth out.'

'No,' she agreed, 'your brother did that.'

'Jareth? Why?'

'Because the first woman you saw after drinking the potion happened to be my daughter. You followed her to the library and were pressing your advances, so to speak, when Jareth walked in. You're lucky you're only missing a tooth. From the look on his face, he wanted to remove a few other pieces of your anatomy.'

'Oh, bloody bog,' Dart groaned.

'Oh, that's not the worse of it,' Linda said with something suspiciously like glee. 'You've lost the wager. I guess your assault on the woman he loves finally made up his mind for him. They are currently locked in her bedchamber, and I'm sure a randy, old goat like you can guess what they're doing.'

'The wager isn't lost until he comes and tells me that he wants to marry her.'

'Oh, don't worry, he will.'

He glared at her with one bleary eye. 'You're enjoying this, aren't you?'

'I must admit that I'm finding the situation somewhat amusing. The man who did everything in his power to keep them apart was instrumental in bringing them together. How deliciously ironic, don't you think?'

'I didn't do _everything_ I could have done,' he told her, his expression sullen.

'No? Why not? I would think a ruthless High King like you would have pulled out every dirty trick in the book. Why didn't you?'

'Because,' he snapped, her taunts pushing him over the edge of his endurance, 'some mouthy wench kept poking her nose in where it wasn't wanted or needed. How can I be suitably ruthless when I'm being watched every minute of the day? It's worse than having a bloody conscious. I should have sent you back to the Aboveground as soon as you opened that mouth of yours.'

'Oh, so it's my fault, is it?'

'Yes, Madame, it is.'

They glared at each other.

'Then why don't you send me back? Send me back right now!'

He stared at her. Bloody bog, she was magnificent, he thought, his eyes lingered on the flashing green eyes, the dark hair made even darker by the shadowy candlelight, the rounded bosom so close yet so far away. Somehow looking at her he couldn't bring himself to be annoyed at her role in causing him to lose the wager. He couldn't even be that annoyed with losing the wager. Oh, who the bloody bog cared who Jareth married?

'Because I've got better plans for you, and if I didn't have this sore jaw,' he told her, his voice husky with promise, 'I'd show you exactly what they are.'

He watched as her eyes widen as his meaning dawned on her. Then they narrowed, becoming seductive slits as she leaned toward him. 'You're not going to let a sore jaw stop you, are you?'

Oh, to the bog with the pain and discomfort, he decided, reaching a hand around the back of her neck. What was a little pain in the face of paradise? His fingers slid into the silky hair at the nape, drawing her closer until her lips hovered above his. His other hand reached for the zip at the back of her burgundy gown.

'A kiss is one thing,' she told him, pulling back a little. 'I don't think you're in any condition for_ that_.'

'Don't worry about it,' Dart growled, pulling her to him. 'Goblin Kings have remarkable endurance.'

_**These characters are from Ball of Fire starring Barbara Stanwyck & Gary Cooper._


	8. Chapter 8 - The Hunt

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

_The Hunt_

Sarah sat bolt upright in bed. 'What the hell is that?

'It's the hunting horn,' Jareth said with a yawn as he sat up beside her. 'They blow it three times on hunt day. Once at day break, once at noon and once just before the hunt begins.' He squinted at the window. 'I suspect that's the day break horn you just heard.'

'A hunting horn?' Sarah repeated. 'You've got to be kidding. It sounded more like a lovesick moose.'

Jareth chuckled, swinging his legs out of bed and reaching for his trousers. 'No matter what you think it sounds like it's telling us to get up and get moving. Hunt days are always full of activity.'

'Do we have to go?'

He looked at her as he shrugged into his jacket. 'Why? Don't you like hunting?'

'Not particularly. I don't like killing poor, defenseless animals.'

'Jackalopes are hardly defenseless, my sweet. In fact, they are some of the most devious creatures known to exist in the Underground. They look cute and harmless, but they're vicious. They've been known to take a goblin's arm off.'

'I still don't want to kill one.'

'You won't have to worry about that,' he assured her, pulling on his boots. 'Dart's been hunting jackalope for over a century and hasn't caught one yet.'

'Then why does he keep trying?'

He straightened, looking at her as though she had asked why the sun rose every morning. 'Because he's bloody stubborn, that's why.'

He left her a short time later. She couldn't imagine what his hurry was, but it was obvious that he had something on his mind that he wished to accomplish so after a long, lingering kiss she let him go. She had things to do herself. Her mother would want to hear what had happened in the library after Dart had been carried out between four goblins.

She dressed quickly, putting on a long divided tunic over leather trousers and boots. She had not worn trousers since coming to the Goblin Realm but decided they'd be much more comfortable and practical for riding. Pulling on a pair of leather gloves, she let herself out of her room.

The hallway was deserted, but she could hear activity in the rooms that she passed. Other guests had been wakened by the horn – seriously, she thought, who could sleep through such a noise – and were engaged in getting dressed. Downstairs came the sound of goblins scurrying to and fro to prepare the dining hall for breakfast.

Linda did not answer when she tapped so she turned the doorknob. It opened easily, and she slipped inside. The sitting room was empty, showing no signs of habitation so she let herself into the bedchamber. Perhaps her mother had been the only person the horn hadn't disturbed. It was a far-fetched possibility, but a possibility nonetheless.

But, after pulling aside the thick, brocade curtains, it was obvious that Linda was not there either. In fact, the bed was unwrinkled, undisturbed. Sarah frowned. If her mother was not here, where was she? Where had she spent the night? Had something happened to her? Had bandits kidnapped her? Was she being sold right now by the Sand Lords to some fat pasha from across the sea?

All kinds of terrific scenarios were running through her head as she left the room and headed for the west wing of the castle where the family suites were located. The High King must be alerted at once. He must be pressed to use every means available to locate her mother. There was no time to waste.

She passed Jareth in the hallway leading to Dart's private quarters. Instead of stopping to greet him, she hurried on by as though she hadn't seen him.

'Sarah,' Jareth called out when he saw her stop outside Dart's apartment. 'I wouldn't go in there if I were you.'

She glanced at him, her hand on the doorknob. 'I don't care if he gets mad at me. My mother is missing, and the High King must be alerted immediately. He needs to send out a regiment of goblins to find her.'

'Sarah…'

But she was gone, striding straight through the sitting room and into the bedchamber beyond. A couple seconds later, she was out again, leaning against the door, her hands over her eyes.

'I did not want to see that.'

Jareth was leaning against the door jamb. 'I told you not to go in there. Maybe next time you'll listen to me.'

'Well, how was I to know that she was…' she searched for an appropriate word, 'in there with him? I thought they hated each other. That,' she jerked a thumb toward the door, 'was not hate, not by a long shot. Geez, I want to wash my eyes out.'

'Apparently they discovered the fine line between love and hate.'

She looked at him, her eyes accusing. 'How did you know they were in there together?'

'I came here directly from your room. I wanted to tell him that I'd made my choice, but when I saw this,' he snagged a bra from the sofa, holding it up, 'and this,' he scooped up a burgundy dress from the floor, 'I put two and two together and decided now was probably not a good time.'

Sarah left the door and plopped down on the sofa. 'Does this mean he's going to be my stepfather?'

'It's hard to say,' Jareth admitted, sitting down beside her. 'He's never shown an inclination to remarry. I suspect it'll depend on your mother. But you might as well resign yourself to having Dart in your life one way or the other.'

'What do you mean?'

'If not your stepfather, he'll definitely be your brother-in-law.'

His meaning finally dawned on her. He had admitted to loving her last night, but he'd said nothing about marriage, and marriage was required to win the wager. She forgot about what was going on in the bedchamber as she stared at him, hope nearly choking her.

'Are you saying…'

He took her hands in his. 'Lady Sarah of the Aboveground, will you marry me?'

**SCENE CHANGE**

Sarah winced as the hunting horn wailed. It was the third and final sounding. The sun was sinking fast as guests seated on short, sturdy ponies waited impatiently for goblins to light torches along the fringe of a dark wood. Not for the first time did she wonder why they were hunting what Jareth had called a devious, vicious animal at dusk when a dark wood was going to be even darker. Perhaps that's why Dart had never caught a jackalope. He couldn't see the darn thing.

She could see Jareth near the entrance of the wood, directing goblins and arguing with guests who were impatient to start. Host duties had fallen upon him since Dart, the Master of the Hunt, was late. Where was he, Sarah wondered, feeling as edgy as the pony beneath her. Surely he and Linda weren't still in his bedchamber.

Finally a cry went up. Dart could be seen trotting across the field on a black horse much larger than those ponies issued to the guests. Linda was beside him, looking very regal. Just like a queen, Sarah thought dryly. She wasn't sure how she felt about this relationship between her mother and Jareth's brother. It was difficult to accept, especially knowing Dart's opinion of love. Would he end up breaking her mother's heart like the infamous Scott?

With a tally-ho, Dart plunged his horse into the woods, Jareth at his side on an equally dark horse, the guest following on their ponies. Sarah urged her own pony forward but made sure to stay well in the rear. She had no desire to hunt jackalopes or be anywhere near the vicious little brutes.

'Ridiculous sport, isn't it?'

Linda had slowed her pony until she and Sarah were side by side.

'I suppose they'd say the same about football,' Sarah replied before asking what she'd been dying to ask since her mother had appeared at Dart's side. 'What kept you so long? The guests were getting restless.'

'There was a very unpleasant scene in the throne room. Dart confronted Dowager Gwen about the love potion, and she threw an absolute hissy-fit.'

'I suspect Dart was up to it.'

'He was magnificent,' Linda agreed. 'Lady Esther has been disqualified and banned from court for a full year. Dowager Gwen had been banned for life. They have until midnight to leave the castle or he'll 'bog them', whatever that means.'

A silence fell between them as they rode deeper into the woods, following the baying of the hounds.

'I came to your bedchamber this morning,' Sarah said, keeping her voice as casual as possible. 'You weren't there.'

'I was with Dart.'

Sarah frowned. There was absolutely no embarrassment in her mother's voice. She said it as though it were the most natural thing in the world.

'I didn't realize that the two of you were so close. I was under the impression that you hated him.'

'I did,' Linda replied, 'but things change, honey. You didn't like Jareth at first either, but now you feel differently about him, don't you? I guess we both found something to love in a Goblin King.'

Was that an admission of love, Sarah wondered, ducking as they rode beneath a tree dripping with lace-like moss. It sure sounded like it.

'So is he going to be my new dad?'

Linda laughed. 'I don't think either of us is ready for that step. We may never be. I have a career in a different world, and I'm not ready to give that up.'

'Does he know that?'

'We haven't discussed it, no. This thing between us is sort of new, you know.'

'Take it from a person who knows,' Sarah said, sending her a knowing glance. 'You'd better discuss as soon as possible. Goblin Kings don't understand careers. He's going to expect you to be here with him. They've got a possessive streak a mile wide.'

Linda frowned but said nothing. Another silence fell between them. It was nearly dark now, and the baying of hounds sounded far off. They urged their ponies into a trot, and finally, they saw the torches of the hunting party far up ahead in a clearing.

**SCENE CHANGE**

Dowager Gwen held the arrow up to the light, turning the broadhead this way and that, admiring its sleek edges. Then she dipped it into a bowl of murky green liquid before pulling it out and carefully laying it beside three other arrows, which had already gone through the process. Their heads were nearly dry and ready for use.

'Mama,' Esther ventured, 'I don't think this is a good idea. Why don't we just go home? The High King was very angry with us. If you do this, we'll never be allowed back in court. We might even be exiled or…or executed.'

'Quiet, my pet,' Dowager Gwen shrieked. 'Mama knows what she's doing. I killed that dough-faced queen of his, didn't I? And he didn't even bother to ask how an arrow found its way to her heart when arrows aren't used in hunting jackalopes. I think if truth be told he was glad to be rid of her. And the lord of this land will be glad when they are rid of him and his house.'

Esther wrung her hands. She had a very bad feeling about this. Cheating was one thing; murder was quite another. She hadn't wanted to be a queen that badly. That was mama's dream, not hers. In fact, she would have been happy to marry Odin, the young squire who lived near their home.

'But if you kill him,' Esther pointed out, 'won't Jareth just take his place? You know _he _won't rest until he finds his brother's murderer, and when he does, he'll not be kind.'

Dowager Gwen smiled as her eyes went to Drusilla who was cringing in the shadows of the room. 'Tell her what you told me, Toad. Tell her how he's been stripped of his Kingdom because Lady Sarah is, in fact, a human, and he's brought her to the Underground before.' When Drusilla just cringed closer to the floor, Gwen continued. 'He can no longer inherit the Goblin Realm, my pet, and he has no son to ascend in his place.'

'But he will have one,' Esther said, 'if he marries.'

'He will not have one soon enough,' Gwen declared, picking up the arrows and placing them on by one in a quiver. 'By that time the Realm will be in other hands. If he does not escape to the Aboveground with his human trollop, then he will be killed to make sure there's no claim to the throne.'

'But without the Goblin Kings how will we control the goblins? They will overrun us and destroy our land and property. They might even guillotine us. It is only the Goblin Kings' power that keeps the rest of us safe.'

'Don't be so squeamish,' Gwen snapped. 'The Goblin Kings are not the only ones capable of ruling this land. A new king or queen will replace them, and things will go on as before, if not better. Now, do stop your whining. They deserve this.'

Esther and Drusilla exchanged glances as their mother clasped a dark cloak around her thick neck and then secured the quiver of arrows to her back.

'You stay here and keep an eye on Toad,' Gwen ordered, her hand on the doorknob. 'You mustn't let her out of your sight. If you do, she'll run and tell that stupid horse. He's foiled our plans twice now. He won't foil this one.'

The door closed, and both Esther and Drusilla ran to the window, their faces pressed against the pane. A few minutes later, they saw what they were looking for. Dowager Gwen's dark form emerged from the stable yard. They watched as she urged her pony toward the dark wood, which sat like a dark, mysterious shadow in the gathering dusk.

Esther turned away from the window and began to pace, her mind racing. She couldn't let her mother do this. If she succeeded the Realm would be plunged into turmoil, possibly even civil war. She had heard stories of how brutal the goblins had been before the Goblin Kings had tamed them, and she shuddered at the thought of her and her family being responsible for a return to such barbarism.

And if her mother didn't succeed, if the High King survived somehow? Once again, Esther shuddered. Her entire family would no doubt lose their heads. Her mother's plan was madness, a scheme hatched up by a bitter, angry woman.

Esther turned, her eyes finding Drusilla. 'Go!'

'W-w-what?'

'I said go,' Esther said, pointing at the door. 'Mama's plan will ruin us. She must be stopped. Go tell the horse. Quickly now. There's not a moment to spare.'

Drusilla got up and ran out of the door, hoping like crazy that Toby was in the stable and not out wandering the mountains.

**SCENE CHANGE**

Sarah was having difficulty keeping up with her mother's horse who was, in turn, having difficulty keeping up with Dart's large black horse. He had caught sight of the elusive jackalope, and now the hunt lust was full upon him. Sending Jareth and most of the hunting party in one direction as a flanking movement, he and a handful of others had continued straight up the steep, wooded incline. Most of the others had stopped, turning their ponies back down the hill, but Linda had struggled onwards.

The desire to turn back was strong, but Sarah pressed on, keeping her mother's light-colored cloak in sight. She didn't know why she didn't join the others downhill. The hill was far too steep and far too congested with moss-strewn trees, but something, some unknown unease, kept her going.

The pony was panting heavily when they finally reached the top, and she groaned when she looked down and saw Dart's black horse and then Linda's quickly descending. At least the trees were less thick in this area, she thought, staring down the slope. There was even a slight clearing at the bottom. It was then, from her superior vantage point, that she noticed the dark figure rising out of the surrounding vegetation.

She squinted, trying to see in the gloom that the figure held in its hands. It was pointing something, but what? Had it spied the jackalope? Or, her eyes followed the line of fire and then frowned. It looked as though the figure was pointing directly at Dart as he sat on his horse, waving his torch in hopes of re-locating his prey.

'Sarah!'

She turned in her saddle. Behind her, scrambling up the hill came Toby with the girl, Drusilla clinging to his back.

'Tell…her…' Toby panted, 'I…haven't got…the breath.'

'It's Mama,' the girl whispered, 'she's going to kill the High King.'

Without another word, Sarah plunged her pony down the hill, Toby and Drusilla on their heels. The noise of their descent caught Linda's attention as she sat beside Dart. She looked back and caught the barest glint of metal as the arrow was released.

Sarah watched in horror as her mother threw herself at Dart. The weight of her body knocked the High King to the side, tumbling him to the ground just as the arrow struck.

Dart was clutching Linda to him, rocking her back and forth when Sarah, Toby and Drusilla arrived.

'Lay down flat on the ground,' Sarah cried, jumping off her pony and running for the couple. 'The assassin may still be out there.'

To prove her point, another arrow whizzed by them, narrowly missing. Sarah dived for the ground.

'Toby,' she yelled, 'go find Jareth and the others! Hurry!'

'Linda,' it was Dart's voice, sounding like the cry of a wounded animal, 'Linda, my sweet, open your eyes. _Open your eyes, damn it!_'

The sound tore at Sarah's heart, but this was not the time to mourn. His life, the entire Goblin Realm was at stake.

'You've got to get down,' Sarah hissed at him. 'Do you want the Goblin Realm to lose its king?'

When he remained where he was, she rose up to a crouch and hurled herself at him, bringing both him and Linda to the ground as yet another arrow flew overhead. She must have gotten her point across because he didn't attempt to get up. They all lay on the ground, waiting for the next missile.

It never came. The sound of Jareth's hunting party could be heard coming towards them, thrashing its way through the shrubs and trees, their torches lighting up the forest, exposing any hidden assassin, and then Sarah found herself being lifted into Jareth's arms while the others tended the king and his fallen lady.


	9. Chapter 9 - A Curse Fulfilled

**CHAPTER NINE**

_A Curse Fulfilled_

Jareth stood outside his brother's suite, feeling strangely undecided. He was loath to disturb him, but matters must be settled. The guests were preparing to leave. Some had already left, their fun destroyed by the curious happenings of the night before. The Dowager Gwen had attempted to murder their king, and they wanted no suspicion to fall on them. The goblins, to their way of thinking, could not load their carriages fast enough.

Placing a gloved hand on the doorknob, he let himself into the antechamber and then strode through to the bedchamber itself. It was dark except for a lone candle sitting on the bedside table. In its light, he could see the hunched figure of his brother sitting in a chair beside the bed. Upon entering the room further, the pale features of Linda Williams became visible as she lay beneath the bed sheets.

'Any change?' he asked quietly, laying a hand on his brother's shoulder.

'No,' the answer was barely above a whisper.

'What did the doctor have to say?'

'The wound itself is not fatal. The arrow hit her shoulder. However, her sleep becomes deeper and deeper. The doctor fears a poison. I've had them gather the spent arrows in the wood, but the doctor is unable to identify the poison. In another day or two,' Dart's voice broke slightly, 'her sleep will be so deep nothing will be able to wake her.'

'So she'll sleep forever.'

'Until she finally dies.'

'I have all goblin regiments out searching for the Dowager.'

Dart snorted. 'When as a goblin been able to find anything but a chicken?'

'I intend to go look for her myself,' Jareth told him. 'But first I wanted to take care of unfinished business. Today is the final day of the festivities.'

'And you want to tell me that you've chosen your bride, eh?' Dart let out a hard laugh. 'And why not? It's a fitting ending, the capstone, so to speak. Go ahead, my boy. Deliver the coup de grace. I'm waiting.'

Jareth looked at him curiously but said. 'I've asked Lady Sarah to marry me.'

'And so my defeat is now complete.' Dart declared, rubbing his eyes with one hand. 'I am not worthy to be a Goblin King. Father would be appalled.'

'I don't understand,' Jareth said, frowning.

A crystal suddenly appeared in Dart's hand. 'Gaze into the crystal, Jareth.'

Jareth's eyes were immediately drawn to the bright globe. He could not look away. It twirled and shimmered.

'Your eyes are becoming heavier and heavier. So heavy you can't keep them open.'

He blinked, struggling against the drowsiness. He wobbled unsteadily and quickly lowered himself into a chair as his eyes closed and his breathing deepened.

'That's right,' Dart's voice murmured. 'Sleep, little brother, sleep. When you wake, your mind will no longer be in the past. It'll be here and now, and you will remember everything, all that went before and all that has occurred in these last two weeks. You will know and understand.'

_A few hours later…_

Jareth woke with a start. He glanced around. This wasn't his bedchamber. Actually, he could see very little. The drapes were pulled, and the room was dark except for a single candle. He sat up in the chair that he'd been lounging in, trying to clear the fog from his brain. What was he doing here? The last thing he remembered…his head jerked up. The wager.

'Awake already?'

It was Dart's voice, but it sounded different than it had when he'd made the wager with them in the throne room. It sounded…defeated. What had happened?

'Don't worry. It'll come back to you.'

'What will come back to me?'

'The things that have occurred over the last two weeks. If you'd slept longer, it would have come back faster. Ah, but you always were an impatient boy.'

'Did we…' Jareth paused, almost afraid to ask, 'did we win?'

'So your first thought is for your piece of fluff, eh?' When Jareth didn't answer, Dart sighed. 'Yes, you won, and so I am obligated to fulfill my part of the bargain. That being said, the Goblin Kingdom will be restored to you upon the morrow, and I will begin procedures to revoke the law against humans. Have I forgotten anything?'

'Toby.'

'Ah, yes, the horse. As soon as you fell asleep, he was no longer a goblin. Whether he's a horse or not will be up to you.'

Jareth frowned. Something was wrong. He could not yet remember what had occurred over the past two weeks, but his brother's tone of voice, his careless, almost fatalistic attitude unsettled him. This was not the Dart he knew two weeks ago. In the throne room, he'd been a ruthless tyrant, completely confident that he would win, and Jareth had hated him. Now he was…beaten, defeated, and although Jareth was overjoyed that they'd won the wager, he did not care for the new Dart.

'What has happened here? He demanded, standing up, hands on hips. 'You do not sound like the brother I knew. Something had occurred.'

Dart let out another one of those hard laughs. 'Why not ask the stars? You were the one that called them to see my perfidy, didn't you? You will be happy to know that they heard you and delivered upon me the just penalty for my treatment of you and your beloved. Believe me, brother, the pain I am feeling at this moment can rival anything you have felt. You chose your revenge well.'

Jareth remembered his words and grimaced. He'd been angry, very angry, and he hadn't really believed that want he'd said would actually come to pass. He really hadn't believed in the power of the stars, but now, hearing Dart's words, seeing him slumped in his chair like an old man, he began to believe…and feel guilty.

'I don't understand any of this.' He gave his head a shake as though to dislodge the fog. 'Damn, my memory.'

Dart sighed. 'I see I must show you. Come closer and look upon the bed.'

Jareth took a step and then another until he was standing just on the edge of the ring of light produced by the candle. He looked at the bed and saw the pale features of Linda Williams against the pillow, her dark hair like a cloud around her.

'What happened to her?'

'The same thing that happened to Aida,' his brother replied, 'but it wasn't meant for her. It was meant for me. She took the arrow on my behalf.'

'Poison,' Jareth murmured as a ray of memory broken through the fog. 'The arrow was poisoned.' Then a thought occurred to him. 'Sarah? Where is she?'

'Never fear. Your love is alive and well. In fact, I would probably be dead if she hadn't knocked me over just as another arrow was let fly. I was too,' his voice broke a bit, 'distracted at the time to have any regard for my own skin. She performed a great service for the Realm, and if you hadn't already won the Goblin Kingdom back, I might have been obliged to award it to her in gratitude.'

Jareth's eyes were on Linda. 'Do you care for her?'

'I more than care for her,' Dart declared. 'I love her, and I know the kind of pain father felt upon mother's death. I understand why he did everything in his power to keep us from experiencing this agony. I told you before, brother, that love in a heinous emotion, and I am more convinced than ever that I was right. It has the power to bring strong men to their knees.'

'It also has the power to lift strong men to ever greater heights.'

'Perhaps but I shall never know those heights.'

'Come now,' Jareth said, growing impatient with his brother's defeatism, 'if it's a poison, then there's an antidote.'

'No doubt there is,' Dart agreed, 'but only Dowager Gwen knows it, and that good lady has taken flight with her daughters.'

'Then I shall find her myself,' Jareth declared. 'I swear by the stars I called against you that I will find this woman and bring her to justice.'

Turning on his heel, he stalked out of the room.

**SCENE CHANGE**

'Sarah,' Toby said, 'I feel different.'

'Different? How?'

'I don't feel like a goblin anymore.'

'You haven't been a goblin for two weeks,' she pointed out, tossing a saddle on his back. 'You've been a horse. A very busy horse.'

'Yeah, I know, but even when I was a horse, I could still feel the goblin inside, if you know what I mean.'

'No, Toby, I don't,' she told him, pulling the cinch tight. 'I've never been a goblin, but I'll take your word for it. Right now I just want you to concentrate on being a horse, ok? We've got to find Gwen before my mom succumbs to the poison. Jareth was going to go with us, but I haven't seen him in hours. I guess his brother didn't take losing well.'

'He took it better than expected,' a familiar voice said from the doorway of the stable, 'but I am concerned about his current mindset. He's gloomier than the bog.'

'Jareth,' Sarah cried, launching herself at him. He caught her and nearly lifted her off her feet. 'It is you, isn't it?' She asked, drawing back to look at him. 'The original Jareth?'

He laughed. 'Yes, I'm the Goblin King that took a baby from you and was wished away by a mouthy bugger.'

Toby hung his head. 'Geez, am I never going to be allowed to forget that?'

'You might be,' Jareth told him, dropping Sarah back down to the floor, 'if you'll help me.'

The horse's head lifted. 'How?'

'First you're going to have to give up the horse costume.'

Sarah thought he was going to protest, but finally Toby said with great reluctance. 'Ok.'

As soon as he said the word, he was a boy again. He looked down at his feet and hands and grimaced, but he brightened when Jareth held on his hand. On his palm lay two silver rings, one which he gave to Toby and the other to Sarah.

'Put them on,' he told them.

The instant she slid the ring onto her finger, she felt a surge of energy flow from her finger out to the other parts of her body. It was an odd, almost scary feeling, and she looked at Jareth for reassurance.

'You've been deputized,' he said. 'You have temporarily been given the powers of a Goblin King. You'll need them if we're to find Dowager Gwen.'

'Cool!' Toby breathed. 'That's _way _better than being a horse! Can I twirl one of those crystal thingys?'

'No,' Jareth said sternly. 'Crystals aren't for amateurs. It takes years of practice to use a crystal properly. Shape-shifting, on the other hand, is a basic skill, and that's what I need the two of you to do. It'll be easier to find Gwen by air, and three set of eyes are better than one.'

'Awesome!' Toby cried. 'How do we do it?'

'Close your eyes and imagine flying. The ring will decide what kind of bird you'll be. It'll feel strange at first,' he warned, 'and we won't be able to talk with our mouths. We'll talk with our minds.'

'Sort of like telepathy?' Toby asked eagerly.

'Yes,' Jareth agreed, 'sort of like telepathy. Now do what I said. We've wasted enough time already.'

Both Sarah and Toby closed their eyes. He was right, Sarah thought, it did feel strange. As she imagine flying her body started to tingle and then her arms became wings and her feet talons. She felt like a lump of clay being stretched and molded into something new.

Within seconds the process was complete, and instead of a human body, she had the body of a snowy white owl, a female version of Jareth. Toby, on the other hand, had been changed into a falcon. He was currently zipping around the stable, making shrieking noises.

'I may well regret this.'

It was Jareth's voice, but before she could answer, he had spread his wings and taken off.

**SCENE CHANGE**

Esther and Drusilla sat in the wildly swaying carriage across from their mother. They'd been travelling all night and all day, only stopping long enough for the horses to be switched at a seedy-looking inn. They knew from the scenery that they were not on their way home. Where they were going was a mystery to them, and neither had the courage to ask their mother. The only thing that they did know was that they were running for their lives.

Drusilla had been snatched and dragged away in the confusion following the assassin attempt. She'd been standing on the sidelines, watching the activity around the High King, listening to Toby excitedly relating the events of the evening to anyone that would listen when a hard hand had closed over her mouth. It wasn't long before she was laying upside down over a pony's back.

The scene between Esther and her mother had been even more frightening. Her mother had wasted little time upon entering the room. She'd backhanded Esther across the face, sending the girl falling backwards onto the floor. Then she'd grabbed both of them by their wrists, dragging them to the stable where a carriage was hastily obtained. When no goblin would take the reins, Gwen had taken them herself, only getting into the carriage when a driver was hired at the inn for a fat bag of coins.

Neither girl dared say anything. Their mother's anger was too terrifying a thing, even for Esther who had been her pet.

The carriage suddenly lurched to one side. The girls screamed as they were thrown against each other. Just as quickly the carriage lurched to the other side, eliciting more screams. The weight of the passengers tumbling about inside like lottery balls, nearly unbalanced the carriage, sending it into the ditch.

Dowager Gwen, holding onto the door frame, stuck her head out the window, shrieking to the driver. 'What the bog is going on up there?'

'Owls,' the driver yelled back. 'Two of them. And a smaller bird, a falcon, I think. They're going for the horses' faces, spookin'em.'

'Then shoot them,' Gwen shrieked.

'It's bad luck to shoot an owl,' the driver growled.

Gwen, her face set in hard lines, pulled out her last arrow.

'Mama,' Esther cried, 'what are you going to do?'

'I'm going to kill an owl.'

Esther looked at Drusilla, and a silent message passed between them. Their mother had to be stopped. They waited, watching as Gwen strung her bow and took aim out the window. Finally their moment came. The carriage lurched again, and with all their strength, they threw themselves into the lurch. The impact sent Gwen tumbling toward them, and her weight was enough to send the carriage into the ditch.

There was a hard jolt, and then the carriage door was flung open, and they were being hauled out one by one like rats in a dog's mouth. When Drusilla dared opened her eyes, she saw a boy, a sandy-haired boy, and she knew. Getting to her feet, she ran to him, throwing her arms about his neck.

'Oh, Toby, I knew you'd come,' she gushed, hugging him.

Toby pushed her away, grimacing. 'No need to get mushy about it.'

They were interrupted by the Goblin King who was towering over Drusilla's mother and sister as they knelt on the ground before him.

'The antidote, Madame,' he demanded, holding out a gloved hand.

'There is no antidote,' Gwen shrieked.

'I don't believe you. All poisons in the Underground have an antidote.'

She lifted her chin. 'If there is an antidote why would I give it to you? You'll execute me whether I give it to you or not. By not giving it to you, I at least die a happy woman knowing I have gotten my revenge.'

'Your fate is in the High King's hands,' Jareth told her grimly. 'If you cooperate, he may decide to be generous.'

'It's a kiss,' Esther spoke up. She had obviously decided to take him up on his offer.

'A what?'

'A kiss,' she repeated. 'Haven't you read your fairytales? It's always a kiss from the princess' one true love that breaks the spell.'

'That's ridiculous,' Jareth snorted.

'She's quite right,' Sarah pointed out. 'It is always a kiss.'

Jareth turned to look at her. 'But what if the one kissing her isn't her one true love?'

Sarah shrugged. 'It's worth a try.'

He turned back to Gwen. 'Is your daughter right? Is it a kiss?'

The Dowager stubbornly refused to talk. She merely glared at the Goblin King with malevolent eyes.

There was a silence as the Goblin King debated his options. Finally he said. 'We'll just have to take them back to the castle with us, but we haven't got time for carriages.' He produced a crystal, handing it to Toby. 'Let's see how good you are at this. Close your eyes and think of the throne room of the castle.'

Toby obediently closed his eyes, and as he thought the crystal grew wider and wider in his hands until it encompassed the entire group, driver, horses, carriage and all.

'You can open your eyes now,' Jareth said. They were standing in the middle of the stable. 'Your bearings were a bit off, but not bad for your first time.'

'Hey,' Toby replied, his tone defensive, 'what can you expect from a kid that's been a horse for two weeks? Of course, I'm going to go the stable.'

**SCENE CHANGE**

Dart stared at the group before him. He felt like he'd played this scene before. The only difference was the characters. His brother and Sarah were still present and now instead of a horse, the screamer was once again a boy, a boy who had obviously picked up a groupie along the way. The girl who he'd taken the wineglass from was staring at the boy with adoring eyes. Well, no accounting for taste. The other two women were all too familiar, but where the bog did the dwarf with the eye-patch and whip come from? He decided it was best not to ask.

'I'm assuming you know why you're here,' he said, his eyes on Dowager Gwen.

'You want the antidote.'

'My brother has already told me the antidote. What I want from you is confirmation that what your daughter told him is correct.'

'Kiss her and find out.'

Dart frowned. When Jareth had told him the antidote, relief had swept through him, but it had been quickly followed by fear. What if he wasn't Linda's one true love? Was he prepared to discover the truth? No, not really. He would prefer a sure thing, and that was why they were all gathered in this blasted throne room at 1 o'clock in the morning.

'I don't like the odds,' he replied.

'Then she will sleep for eternity,' Gwen shrieked, smiling.

'I'm telling the truth,' Esther told him, her eyes pleading with her to believe her. 'Mama's taught me all about her potions, and I swear it's the only antidote.'

'And what if the victim doesn't have a true love,' he snapped. 'What then?'

'He or she will…' Esther's voice dropped to a whisper, 'never wake up.'

'What a ridiculous kind of potion,' Dart snorted. 'It can only be reversed a small percentage of the time.'

'That's the beauty of it,' Gwen shrieked. 'It's nearly 100% effective every time it's used. True love is a very rare thing. Many people think they're in love, but is it true? Only the potion can tell you.'

And that's what scared the bog out of him. He and Linda had had such a short time together, and during the majority of that time, she had disliked him intensely. Yes, she had warmed up nicely, especially that last night in his bedchamber, but was it enough? Hadn't she once told him that wanting wasn't enough?

'Must it be true love on both sides?'

'Of course,' Gwen shrieked. 'It would be too easy if it didn't require total commitment from both parties.'

'You realize that not only will you be charged with an assassin attempt on your High King but you'll stand trial for Aida's death as well? It is very unlikely that you'll escape with your head.' When she just stared at him with those defiant black eyes, he turned to his guard and ordered. 'Take them to the dungeon and hold them there. If the kiss doesn't work, we'll torture them until the Dowager remembers another antidote.'

'Oh, please,' Esther pleased as the goblin led her away. 'I had nothing to do with the assassin attempt. I even tried to stop her.' Her eyes went to Drusilla. 'Tell them, Toad. Tell them that I let you out of the room so you could warn them.'

Dart's eyes went to the girl. 'Well, child, is this true?'

Drusilla nodded.

'Take her to the dungeon with her mother.'

As soon as the two women disappeared from the room, Sarah turned on Dart, her eyes accusing. 'You're not going to torture that poor girl, are you?'

It was Linda's eyes and Linda's voice accusing him, and his heart squeezed painfully. 'What do you think?'

'You once threatened to put me on the rack so what am I to think?'

'She will not be tortured,' he declared before saying. 'Now leave me. All of you.' When Jareth turned to go with the rest, he called out. 'Not you, Jareth.'

'So,' Jareth said when they were alone in the throne room. 'What are you waiting for?'

'You may find this hard to believe,' Dart told him, 'but I find myself strangely reluctant to administer the antidote.'

'Why? You told me earlier that you loved her.'

Dart suddenly burst out of his chair. 'And what if she doesn't love me, eh? What then? Am I to increase my present sorrow by discovering the truth of her feelings for me?'

'It is a risk you'll have to take. If there is a chance that this kiss will wake her, you must take it. You cannot leave her in her present condition because you fear the truth.'

And with that Jareth turned on his heel and left the room.

**SCENE CHANGE**

The sun was just beginning to color the sky when Dart let himself into his bedchamber. Eliza Doolittle's words were ringing in his head. _If you're in love, show me!_

Walking over to the bed, he stood for a long moment staring down. She looked so peaceful, so beautiful in her sleep. Did he really want to wake up that mouth? Yes, he decided, bending down, he did!

His lips touched hers. He waited. Nothing happened. He turned away, his heart breaking. And then he heard it, that wonderful, magnificent mouth…

'Now just where do you think you're going?'


	10. Epilogue - Written In the Stars?

**EPILOGUE**

Sarah held the fat one year old on her knee, bouncing him up and down as he giggled. 'He's beautiful.'

'But not as beautiful as his sister,' Linda corrected, smoothing the dark hair of the sleeping baby in her arms.

'Well, I guess the Goblin Realm is secure now,' Sarah said. 'It has two heirs instead of just one.'

'And who would have ever believed I'd be a mother again at my age,' Linda murmured, still feeling a little awed, 'and twins to boot.'

'It's this magical goblin air,' Sarah told her.

She watched her mother stand and carefully place the sleeping baby in one of the two cribs in the room. How happy she looked. Of course, it had not always been that way. There'd been some pretty magnificent rows in the Goblin Castle before Linda had finally agreed to give up her career and be a fulltime High Queen. Seeing her contentment, Sarah was loath to tell her the reason for her visit, but it had to be said.

'Ah, mom?'

'Hmmm?

'There's something I need to tell you.'

Linda whirled, all smiles. 'I'm going to be a grandma?'

'Ah, no,' Sarah said, 'that's not it.'

'Then what is it?'

Sarah took a deep breath. 'Jareth and I have decided to return to the Aboveground.'

'You've gone that lots of times since Dart removed the barriers. What's so special about that?' She brightened. 'You're going to go see one of those special doctors, right?'

'No!'

'You don't have to sound so horrified. Lots of couples need help with fertility.'

'Mom,' Sarah cried, 'we don't need help, ok?'

'It's been nearly two years, longer if you count the time before Toby wished Jareth away, and you still haven't had a child.'

'And we're fine with that,' Sarah told her. 'If it happens, it happens. We're not going to go to some fertility clinic to help it along, ok? We're happy the way we are. Just the two of us.'

'If you say so.'

'You're starting to sound like a mother.'

'I am a mother, your mother. Now what's so special about going to the Aboveground?'

'We're going to go there to stay. Permanently.'

'Permanently,' her mother echoed.

'It's where we both feel the most comfortable,' Sarah explained, 'and Jareth wants to write music again, maybe even another rock musical. We've already purchased a house. We bought it the last time we were there.'

'So you're going to leave Toby and I here by ourselves?'

'You're not by yourself. You've got Dart and the twins, and as for Toby, he doesn't really need anybody. He's pretty self-sufficient.'

'What about the Goblin Kingdom? Are you going to leave it after everything you two went through to get it back?'

'The wager wasn't about the Kingdom,' Sarah pointed out. 'It was about us being together. The Kingdom was just an added bonus, and, yes, we're prepared to give it up. Jareth has decided to name Toby as his successor. He's taught him quite a bit in the last year and a half, but he'll need additional training so that's why I want him to stay here with you and Dart until he's old enough to administrator the kingdom on his own. Dart can complete his training.'

'And what if you do eventually have a son? By rights, the kingdom should go to him.'

'I don't think he'll miss anything by not being a Goblin King. There are plenty of opportunities in the Aboveground.'

Linda was silent for a moment or two, her brow wrinkled, and then she sighed. 'Well, if your mind is made up, it's made up. I'll certainly miss you, but as you said, you'll visit. Actually, this may be a blessing.'

'How so?'

'It's Dru. I'm worried about her. I think you ought to take her with you.'

'Why? She's been happy here with you and Dart.'

'You mean with Toby, don't you?'

Sarah sighed. 'You're referring to her tendency to treat Toby like a god.'

'Yes, and it's starting to have a negative effect on that boy. She follows him around like a puppy, and the more she loves him, the more he seems to despise her. It's almost as though he enjoys hurting her at times. I don't want that for her. She had enough of that with her mother and sister. I hoped that after Gwen drank that poison in the dungeon, things would be different for her. She'd be with people that cared about her, but I don't like what I'm seeing. I could send her to Esther, but I'm not sure that's a better situation or not. I didn't really know what to do with her until now. Going with you to the Aboveground might be exactly what she needs.'

'I'd have to run in by Jareth, but I don't think he'll mind. He's used to having Toby underfoot, and Dru would certainly be more obedient than Toby ever was. I guess, the real question is how will she take it?'

'Badly, I'm afraid, but there are a lot of things in our world that will distract her. She'll make friends and go to school and maybe even gain a little confidence.'

'Will you tell her?'

Linda nodded. 'I'll tell her.'

Sarah stood up, put the baby in the other crib and then turned back to her mother. 'Well, I guess this is it. We're leaving in the morning. Jareth is telling Toby now.'

Linda stood up as well, holding out her arms. 'I'll miss you, honey. Please come and visit us often. I want my babies to know their big sister.'

'I will,' Sarah promised, hugging her. 'I'm so glad Jareth brought us together again.'

'Me too.'

**SCENE CHANGE**

'She misses him,' Sarah said, coming back from behind and slipping her arms around Jareth's neck as he plunked away on the piano.

'Give it time,' he replied, his eyes on the score sheet in front of him. 'It's only been a few weeks.'

'Do you suppose they'll ever see each other again?'

'Of course, they'll see each other when we visit.'

'Oh, Jareth,' Sarah sighed, 'this place is making you far too practical.'

'I'm just being realistic.'

'I guess what I'm asking is do you think they're written in the stars?'

He stopped plunking, turned on his bench so that he was facing her and then pulled her down onto his lap. 'I don't have any fancy, mysterious answer for you, my sweet. Even ex-Goblin Kings aren't privy to the secret plans of stars. All I can say is – wait and see.'

Wait and see, Sarah mused as Jareth brushed his lips against her. Yes, she would just have to wait and see.

**THE END**

**Once again, I thank all of you for reading and appreciate all your comments. I'm pretty much written out at the moment. If you have any ideas or suggestions for future stories, feel free to send me a private message.**


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